Lot Essay
Smart's model for this subject was probably Elisabeth Horne, a well known 'character' in Tunbridge Wells - a lithographic portrait by C. Hulton of Horne in 1830 at the age of 88 survives in the museum at Tunbridge Wells. The red hooded cloak was the traditional garment for peasant women in England prior to the industrial revolution. A painting by Abel Hold of c.1840, in the Cooper Gallery, Barnsley illustrates such a cloak worn by Margaret Meal (alias Peggy Airey - she sold clothes pegs).
South of Royal Tunbridge Wells, at Eridge, is the seat of the Marquesses of Abergavenny, The Nevill family occupied the site from the 1400s, along with the castle of Abergavenny and its barony. The site was abandoned by the family in the mid-1600s and left to decay. The 2nd Earl of Abergavenny returned in 1789 and re-built the house as seen in the picture. By 1938 the castle was once again in decay, and upon suceeding to the title, the 4th Marquess demolished the building and erected the existing dwelling.
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE:
Margaret Gill, Proffessor of Perculiar Art, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council Publication.
South of Royal Tunbridge Wells, at Eridge, is the seat of the Marquesses of Abergavenny, The Nevill family occupied the site from the 1400s, along with the castle of Abergavenny and its barony. The site was abandoned by the family in the mid-1600s and left to decay. The 2nd Earl of Abergavenny returned in 1789 and re-built the house as seen in the picture. By 1938 the castle was once again in decay, and upon suceeding to the title, the 4th Marquess demolished the building and erected the existing dwelling.
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE:
Margaret Gill, Proffessor of Perculiar Art, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council Publication.