And to make matters worse, the image of Major Francis Peirson, which is attributed to Philip John Ouless, one of the Island’s most celebrated artists, is currently in Guernsey.
The 24-year-old Major Peirson was killed commanding the victorious British forces at the Battle of Jersey on 7 January 1781.
Experts at Christie’s auction house put the oil painting into a sale in July as part of a job lot of four works attributed to Ouless, and catalogued the Major Peirson portrait simply as ‘an army officer’. The four works were sold for just £125 and included a painting of Victoria College.
• See today’s JEP for the full story
