My favorite find of the week, and among my favorites ever, found in southern Maine but painstakingly created in Shropshire, England, c. 1820s. I occasionally come across fine early 19th century British embroideries on painted silk in this manner (and some less fine Victorian ones that are wrongly described as Georgian)--but this one feels like it was expressly made to arrive in my hands 200 years after its creation; for me its all about her, and I completely love her. (Looking very intense, and focused, and solitary, with pen in hand, she immediately made me think of Emily Dickinson!)
What a marvelous face--exposed silk, her skin painted white and her eyes deep blue--with marvelously painted curls framing her forehead, and fancy collar embroidered at her neck. And then her very long-fingered hands, embroidered pen in one resting on a large page, writing, the other clutching what I imagine is an encased portrait miniature to her chest. With a glorious spectrum of golden threads giving form, stitch by varied stitch, to the rest of her and the surrounding landscape, with Ludlow Castle in the distance. (Ludlow Castle, a ruined medieval fortification, stands on a promontory overlooking the River Teme; probably founded by Walter de Lacy after the Norman Conquest, it was one of the first stone castles to be built in England; and here, as backdrop, its presence seems to enhance a sense of isolation, and the passage of time, too.) I presume Mary Ann Earle, whose name appears in gold at lower left on the reverse glass painted border, was both the creator and the subject of this marvelous feat of skill and labor, and while I have not found a definitive reference for her, I would like to know everything about her-- and in absence of that would be inclined to imagine all sorts of stories!
21 5/16" x 18 1/2" framed. Original frame, under glass with eglomise (reverse painted) black and gold border. Excellent condition, clean and crisp, with just a bit of loss to the gold lettering at center bottom.
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