John Frederick Herring, Sr. (After) Touchstone

Updated August 7, 2026

Artist: After John Frederick Herring, Sr. (1795–1865) Title: Touchstone Medium: Colour print (offset reproduction after the original oil painting) Image Size: 9 × 12 in. Frame Size: 14.5 × 17.5 in. Inscribed: Titled Touchstone with printed inscription "Painted by John Frederick Herring, Senr." A decorative colour print after the celebrated sporting artist John Frederick Herring, Sr., depicting the famous Thoroughbred racehorse Touchstone standing in profile with two gentlemen in conversation. The original painting commemorates one of Britain's greatest nineteenth-century racehorses and sires, whose influence on the Thoroughbred breed extended for generations. The reverse retains an old handwritten collector's note identifying Touchstone as being by Camel, winner of the St. Leger Stakes (1834), Doncaster Gold Cup (1835 & 1836) and Ascot Gold Cup (1836 & 1837). The note further records Touchstone's notable offspring, including Blue Bonnet, Cotherstone, Orlando, Mendicant, and Newminster, all important names in nineteenth-century British racing history. Artist Biography John Frederick Herring, Sr. (1795–1865) ranks among the foremost British sporting painters of the nineteenth century. Renowned for his remarkably accurate depictions of racehorses, hunters, and coaching scenes, Herring became official painter to the Duchess of Kent and later Queen Victoria. His paintings of celebrated Thoroughbreds remain highly sought after, and his originals are held in major museum and private collections throughout Britain and internationally. His work has long been reproduced as engravings and decorative prints for collectors of sporting art.

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