Rokeby Venus may have commissioned himself, "The Nude Maja" and "The Clothed Maja". These bear obvious compositional similarities with Velázquez's "Venus", although unlike Velázquez, Goya clearly painted his nude in a calculated attempt to provoke shame and disgust in the relatively unenlightened climate of 18th-century Spain. "Venus" was brought to England in 1813, where it was purchased by John Morritt for £500 (£ in 2019), and on the advice of his friend Sir Thomas Lawrence. Morritt hung it in his house at Rokeby Park, Yorkshire—thus the painting's popular name. In 1906, the painting was acquired for the National Gallery by the newly
Ralph Rokeby (died 1596) Ralph Rokeby (died 1596) Ralph Rokeby (c.1527–1596) was an English barrister and judge who held high office in Ireland. He was born at Mortham in Yorkshire, the second son of Thomas Rokeby and his wife Jane Constable; Jane was the daughter of Sir Robert Constable of Cliffe, Selby, who was executed in 1537 for his part in the Pilgrimage of Grace, and his wife Jane Ingleby. Ralph was educated at the University of Cambridge and Lincoln's Inn, where he was called to the Bar. He was first sent to Ireland in the service of Queen Elizabeth I in 1566; he