Sarah Kemble (1755-1831) married William Siddons. After a triumphant success at Drury Lane she became the leading tragic actress in the country. Mrs Siddons is represented as the Tragic Muse (Melpomene), whose attributes of a dagger and cup are held by allegorical figures of Pity and Terror. The treatment was possibly suggested by W. Russell's poem of 1783. The pose, which according to the actress's own account she struck spontaneously, appears to be based on Domenichino's Saint John the Evangelist.
Joshua Reynolds
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