Portrait of an unidentified lady, 1877

A lithograph of an unidentified lady, by George B. Black, 1877.

A black and white half-length lithograph portrait of a white woman in her 30s-40s. She is positioned with her hands clasped, leaning on a chair facing the left of the frame while she faces out to the right. She is dressed in ornate dark Victorian clothing, with a full skirt and dark jacket with bow detail at the v-neck collar. She wears a small pouch on her hip, with lace detail at the top, embroidered with what looks like three initials (H, E, R). Lace also features prominently at her cuffs, collar, and hat, which suggests a possible link to Devon lacemaking. She wears simple drop earrings, a number of linked bracelets and a large ring on her wedding finger. The portrait is signed by the artist in pencil, in the bottom left-hand corner, reading: ‘G. B. Black London 1877’, highlighted by a loose circle (this style of signature is repeated in various other portraits by Black.) Below the image is text handwritten in black ink, which reads: ‘Yours truly’ [the name is illegible.]

George Black was a lithographer and publisher, active between 1840-1880, who mostly worked on portraits from life. Based in London, he worked at the Strand (1847-1852) and Regent Street (1860-1870s), which is perhaps where this portrait was created. Sadly nothing is known about the woman depicted, other than the fact that she would have been wealthy due to her dress and jewellery, and having her portrait completed by Black, whose other notable sitters included Sir Isaac Newton, Mayor of London Michael Gibbs, and the Vice President of the Royal Society. 

Related Collections

Portraits