A Pair of Late 19th Century Reverse Glass Portraits

Dimensions are for the frames.

A fine pair of reverse glass portraits, each panel depicting a woman of rank, at leisure: the first by a toilet mirror adjusting her hair; the second, in a small boat within an imaginary landscape.

Reverse glass pictures became fashionable in the 18th century. Glass panels were sent from Europe to China by sea, where they were painted to order, framed and then returned to the West for inclusion in Chinese inspired interiors.

This pair of portraits follows in this glorious tradition. Their scale is unusually large and the domestic and sartorial details are exceptionally fine. The pictures retain their original moulded frames together with their pierced bronze hanging plates.