Beatrice, a Portrait of Jane Morris by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882)

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Beatrice, a Portrait of Jane Morris

Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882)

Signed with monogram and dated 1879 at the upper left

Oil on canvas

13 1/2 x 11 inches.

Inscribed in Rossetti's handwriting on a label on the back of the frame: "Tanto gentile e tanto onesta pare." Dante Vita Nuova

This is a portrait of Jane Morris in the guise of Dante's Beatrice. It is a variation of the half-length seated portrait of her in the role of Mariana which he painted in 1870, and which is now in Aberdeen Art Gallery. — Christopher Newall

Provenance: The artist; Rossetti's studio sale, Christie's, 12 May 1883, lot 104, described as 'Head of a Lady 1879' -- clipping attached (bought by Butler through C. A. Howell for �40)

Related Materials

Tragic Love in Rossetti's Beatrice, A Portrait of Jane Morris

Bibliography

Newall, Christopher. A Celebration of British and European Painting of the 19th and 20th Centuries. London: Peter Nahum, nd [1999?]. Pp. 24-25.

Surtees, Virginia. Dante Gabriel Rossetti. 2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971. Catalogue no. 256. I, 152.

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Last modified 27 June 2020