Genteel Occupations

This wonderful example of Georgian domestic portraiture shows Elizabeth Hector seated, book in hand, in her parlour with her overflowing sewing box and pin cushion on a revolving drum table by her side. She wears a taupe dress with a ruff collar fill-in, a red fringed shawl drawn round her shoulders but it is her frothy cap trimmed and tied with pale blue ribbon bows that steals the show.

Born around 1747, Elizabeth was the daughter of Thomas Page. She married James Hector in June 1771 at St Marys in Portsea, Hampshire. The couple had one son and one daughter. Elizabeth died, aged 78, in 1825 whilst living at Turnham Green, Chiswick.

Watercolour on card, unsigned and housed in the original gilt wood frame with an old hand-written label on the backing paper. The portrait is in excellent condition; the frame has rubbing to the gilding and a couple of edge chips.