Mary of Bethany

Maker William Morris (British, 1834 - 1896)

Maker Morris and Company (London, British, 1861 - 1940)

Collections

William Morris Collection

ClassificationsDRAWINGS

Dateca. 1862

Mediumgraphite and wash on paper

Dimensions22 1/4 x 14 1/8 in. (56.5 x 35.9 cm.)

DescriptionRobed female figure, haloed, turned to viewer's left, left hand grasping cloak, right hand raised, holding small reed-like object.

Inscribedverso lower center in graphite of Sanford Berger: "46 Mary of Bethany 1862 window St. Martin's-on-the-Hill, Scarborough / St. Michael and All Angels - Brighton / Bradford Cathedral 1864"; verso lower right in graphite: "16"; verso lower left in graphite: "46"

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

Status

Not on view

Label TextMany of the firm's partners contributed designs for the figures while Morris alone designed nearly all of the tracery. Morris's figure drawings often demonstrate a preoccupation with the fall of the fabric on the figure, perhaps foreshadowing his later interest in textile design. This drawing for Mary of Bethany was made for an early commission but, like many of the firm's figure designs, was reused in Bradford Cathedral. For a brief period during the firm's early years, Morris produced many such figure drawings, intended as designs for stained glass, painted furniture, or embroidery. The Huntington William Morris Collection contains over 140 of these rare figure drawings.

Object number2000.5.323