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Hester Lynch Piozzi (née Salusbury, later Mrs. Thrale)

1785–86

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 899

Hester Thrale’s face radiates intelligence and determination. The sitter kept a diary of the 1775 trip to France she took with her husband and Samuel Johnson, the famed British lexicographer. While Johnson’s journal of their experiences at Versailles is terse, Thrale recounted her experiences with a delightful immediacy and a keen sense of perception. She described the apartments in the palace as having "effaced every Sight my Eyes have yet seen for Riches, Pomp, & Beauty."

Hester Lynch Piozzi (née Salusbury, later Mrs. Thrale), Oil on canvas, Italian — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Hester Lynch Piozzi (née Salusbury, later Mrs. Thrale)

Date: 1785–86

Culture: Italian

Medium: Oil on canvas

Dimensions: Unframed: 29 3/4 × 24 3/4 in. (75.6 × 62.9 cm)
Framed: 34 13/16 × 29 5/8 × 2 3/8 in. (88.5 × 75.2 × 6 cm)

Classification: Paintings

Credit Line: The National Portrait Gallery, London (NPG 4942)

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European Sculpture and Decorative Arts at The Met

The Met's comprehensive collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century.