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Sir Thomas Bell

1 of 3 portraits by Maria, Lady Bell (née Hamilton)

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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Sir Thomas Bell

by William Dickinson, after Maria, Lady Bell (née Hamilton)
mezzotint, published 1816
20 3/8 in. x 13 7/8 in. (519 mm x 354 mm) plate size; 21 7/8 in. x 15 1/2 in. (556 mm x 393 mm) paper size
Purchased with help from the Friends of the National Libraries and the Pilgrim Trust, 1966
Reference Collection
NPG D31652

Sitterback to top

  • Sir Thomas Bell (1751-1824), Sheriff of the City of London, leather merchant and husband of Maria, Lady Bell (née Hamilton). Sitter in 1 portrait.

Artistsback to top

  • Maria, Lady Bell (née Hamilton) (1755-1825), Artist; wife of Sir Thomas Bell. Artist or producer associated with 3 portraits.
  • William Dickinson (1746-1823), Engraver and printseller. Artist or producer associated with 85 portraits, Sitter in 1 portrait.

Portrait setback to top

Subjects & Themesback to top

Events of 1816back to top

Current affairs

Marriage of Princess Charlotte to Leopold I.
Income Tax abolished.
Unsuccessful Spa Fields Riot led by the ultra-radical Arthur Thistlewood which aimed to attack the Tower of London and the Bank of England and set up a ruling 'Committee of Public Safety' following the French model.

Art and science

Jane Austen publishes Emma.
Leeds and Liverpool Canal completed.

International

British Government buys the Elgin Marbles, taken from the Acropolis in Athens by Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin, and brought to England between 1803 and 1812. Their acquisition prompts support from Thomas Lawrence and Benjamin Robert Haydon and condemnation from Lord Byron.
Slave rebellion fails in Barbados; four hundred slaves are executed.

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