Frances Mary Lavinia Rossetti (née Polidori)
(1800-1886), Mother of Dante Gabriel, William Michael and Christina RossettiSitter in 5 portraits
She is noted for her family connections more than in her own right. The daughter of Italian exile Gaetano Polidori and sister of John Polidori, Lord Byron's physician, she married the Italian exile Gabriele Rossetti in London. Her two sons, Gabriel Charles Dante (later known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti) and William Michael were among the co-founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Frances sat for Gabriel for some of his early paintings. Her youngest child, Christina Georgina, became famous as a poet and is probably best known as the author of the poem Goblin Market.
by Lewis Carroll
albumen print, 7 October 1863
NPG P56
Maria Francesca Rossetti; Frances Mary Lavinia Rossetti (née Polidori); Dante Gabriel Rossetti
by Lewis Carroll
albumen print, 7 October 1863
NPG P1273(21b)
by Lewis Carroll
albumen print, 7 October 1863
NPG P1273(25b)
Frances Mary Lavinia Rossetti (née Polidori)
by Lewis Carroll
albumen print, 7 October 1863
NPG P1273(26e)
Christina Rossetti; Frances Mary Lavinia Rossetti (née Polidori)
by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
chalk, 1877
NPG 990
Related People
- Oliva Frances Madox Agresti (née Rossetti) (granddaughter)
- Christina Georgina Rossetti (daughter)
- Dante Gabriel Rossetti (son)
- Maria Francesca Rossetti (daughter)
- Mary Elizabeth Madox Rossetti (granddaughter)
- Michael Ford Rossetti (grandson)
- William Michael Rossetti (son)
Comments back to top
We are currently unable to accept new comments, but any past comments are available to read below.
If you need information from us, please use our Archive enquiry service . Please note that we cannot provide valuations. You can buy a print or greeting card of most illustrated portraits. Select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Buy a Print button. Prices start at around £6 for unframed prints, £16 for framed prints. If you wish to license an image, select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Use this image button, or contact our Rights and Images service. We digitise over 8,000 portraits a year and we cannot guarantee being able to digitise images that are not already scheduled.