Please decipher

[Viktoria]

I think it says Lord Duffrin.
What I took to be an X is the L of Lord.Viktoria.

[artlover123]

How confounding! Thanks for your help

Best,

Joshua

[Karen McDonald]

This one is bugging me. 

If I google Dufferin, lots of things appear concerning this chappy:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood,_1st_Marquess_of_Dufferin_and_Ava

And if I google further, certain pictures keep popping up, including this one:

https://www.gettyimages.de/detail/nachrichtenfoto/sir-william-temple-17th-century-english-statesman-and-nachrichtenfoto/463996221?adppopup=true

Now is this simply because he was also a Temple? Or does he indeed have something to do with the Freddy shown above?

I'm not saying he is the man in the painting, but I don't understand why google keeps sending me in circles with the pair of them... 

P.S. What sort of time are we talking about for the man in the painting? Mid-to-late 17th century?

[artlover123]

Hi Karen,

One can't get them all is the sad truth! Seventeenth century yes, and looks Spanish from the costume and physiognomy. However, your chap at the Getty though English could be read into it. But then times were different!

This one is proving to be tricky and without anymore information might remain a mystery.

Best wishes,

Joshua