Antique English oil painting portrait of Shylock

Antique English oil painting portrait of Shylock, Jewish moneylender from The Merchant of Venice, holding a dagger, ready to exact his pound of flesh. English School, 1750-1800. Unsigned, artist unknown. Oil on oak panel. Elaborate gilt gesso frame. Size of frame: 17 x 15 inches; Size of portrait: 12.5 x 10 inches; Size of front portrait aperture: 12 x 10 inches. Weight: 1.6 kg (allow 5 kg volumetric weight once packed). Tatty condition, commensurate with age - various superficial marks & scratches, craquelure, significant paint loss and lots of knocks to and pieces missing from gesso frame but all part of its charm and character. Priced accordingly. This painting is quite sombre and melancholy and, although photographed in daylight, please understand that it is quite dark in reality. This item is obviously delicate and the gesso frame fragile. Therefore, whilst every care will be taken to pack this item extremely well, I cannot guarantee that some pieces of plaster will not become fragmented and dislodged. Please understand this before committing to buy and it will need to be understood that the buyer accepts this risk if having the item delivered by courier. No refunds will be available for this reason nor can the item be returned.