Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
This miniature shows Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806) and Lady Elizabeth Christiana Foster née Harvey (1757-1824). Georgiana, née Spencer, married the Duke of Devonshire in 1774 and immediately became a fashion icon and celebrity. In 1782 the Devonshires met Lady Elizabeth Foster, who soon became the Duke's, and possibly also the Duchess's, lover. After Georgiana's death, Elizabeth became the Duke's second wife.In November and December of 1791 the Duchess of Devonshire and Lady Elizabeth stayed together in Paris. The stay correlates with a note in Jean-Urbain Guérin's journal that he made a drawing of the Duchess on 12 November 1791. A token of friendship, two versions were painted - one for each sitter. One version is in the Wallace Collection, London. Another version exists in the Louvre, Paris. There are a number of differences between the version by Guérin and the Walters' version, which is probably a copy, most notably the omission of the basket of flowers in the hand of the woman to the left, and the position of the figures' arms.The back of this miniature is covered in pink silk over which is placed a pierced and engraved metal plaque representing a vase of flowers, these elements are covered with glass.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
20606
label
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, and Lady Elisabeth Foster
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
20606
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, and Lady Elisabeth Foster
description
This miniature shows Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806) and Lady Elizabeth Christiana Foster née Harvey (1757-1824). Georgiana, née Spencer, married the Duke of Devonshire in 1774 and immediately became a fashion icon and celebrity. In 1782 the Devonshires met Lady Elizabeth Foster, who soon became the Duke's, and possibly also the Duchess's, lover. After Georgiana's death, Elizabeth became the Duke's second wife.In November and December of 1791 the Duchess of Devonshire and Lady Elizabeth stayed together in Paris. The stay correlates with a note in Jean-Urbain Guérin's journal that he made a drawing of the Duchess on 12 November 1791. A token of friendship, two versions were painted - one for each sitter. One version is in the Wallace Collection, London. Another version exists in the Louvre, Paris. There are a number of differences between the version by Guérin and the Walters' version, which is probably a copy, most notably the omission of the basket of flowers in the hand of the woman to the left, and the position of the figures' arms.The back of this miniature is covered in pink silk over which is placed a pierced and engraved metal plaque representing a vase of flowers, these elements are covered with glass.
provenance
E. F. Bonaventure [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, New York, 1910, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, by bequest, 1931.
date
after 1791
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Miniatures
miniatures (paintings)
portraits
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
8.6
height
7.2
dimensionsRaw
H: 3 3/8 × W: 2 13/16 in. (8.6 × 7.2 cm)
Source extras
inscriptions
[Signature] At bottom left: Perin (?)
med
watercolor on ivory
creator_ids
7494
collection_ids
EAN
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
7973a80a32f25ee5