Maria Elizabeth Boothby

A partially obscured but lengthy inscription on the reverse of this hollow-cut silhouette names the sitter as Maria Elizabeth Boothby. Born in February 1758, she was the youngest child and only daughter of Sir Brooke Boothby, 5th Baronet and his second wife, Phoebe Hollins. The family seat was Ashbourne Hall in Derbyshire. Maria’s elder brother, the future 6th Baronet, was a poet who dedicated several poems to his beloved sister. Her likeness was also captured by Sir Joshua Reynolds amongst others. Maria died unmarried in 1805, aged 47.

Maria is shown here with her hair piled high as was the fashion during the 1770s. Dressing the hair was a lengthy and costly process so a lady’s head was typically only “opened” (this was the term used) every couple of months by which time the untreated woollen pads could be pretty pungent! Maria’s hair is topped with a cap trimmed with ribbons and this, together with her ribbon necklace tied at the back of her neck, gives the profile an attractive elegance.

Working during the eighteenth century, Sarah Harrington specialised in ‘hollow-cut’ silhouettes where the profile was cut out of white paper but it was the surrounding paper that was retained and backed with either black paper or silk. This profile is typical of her work and is set in the original decorative pressed brass frame that she favoured.

Working between 1772 and 1787, Mrs Harrington took up silhouette cutting in later life, successfully patenting her method of producing profiles in 1775. She regularly went on tour and always attracted a steady clientele. She was a well-educated lady and advocated the education of women, even giving geography lessons to young ladies. Her work can often be recognised by the defined eyelash and gentle swoop of the bust-line termination.