Wigs on the Green has dated this piece to the Regency era.
Resorting to litigation, he lost that particular battle though he won others, including a sizeable pay rise and the right to appoint an assistant teacher to lighten his workload. Events came to a head in 1848 when Gedge finally resigned as the schoolmaster, though not as the vicar. This ruse allowed him to continue living in the schoolhouse cum vicarage until he was ready to move his family to a recently inherited property in Suffolk.
It is fortunate that Harriot, as seen here, appears capable and patient, qualities she would surely have needed in abundance to run an harmonious home. The absence of jewellery also suggests a no nonsense down-to-earth nature. Harriet died in 1859, aged 66. Joseph went on to outlive a second wife and was 93 when he died.
Depicted wearing a spotted muslin dress with a frilled neckline, Harriot wears her auburn hair cropped and curled. The portrait is set in a gilded frame that is glazed reverse to show neatly plaited hair.
Framed Size: 87 x 70mm
Provenance: UK Private Collection
APHA Registration: QPP8FK19
Wigs on the Green has dated this piece to the Regency era.
Small portraiture of character & historical interest
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Thomas Richmond, Portrait of Harriot Gedge
