Frances Abington (née Barton) ('Scrub')

1 portrait of Frances Abington (née Barton)

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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Frances Abington (née Barton) ('Scrub')

by James Sayers, published by Thomas Cornell
etching, published 15 February 1786
11 in. x 7 7/8 in. (278 mm x 200 mm) plate size; 11 7/8 in. x 8 5/8 in. (301 mm x 218 mm) paper size
Purchased, 1905
Reference Collection
NPG D9580

Sitterback to top

Artistsback to top

  • Thomas Cornell (active 1780-1792). Artist or producer associated with 59 portraits.
  • James Sayers (1748-1823), Artist. Artist or producer associated with 192 portraits, Sitter in 1 portrait.

Related worksback to top

  • NPG D14774: Frances Abington (née Barton) ('Scrub') (from same plate)

Linked publicationsback to top

  • Perry, Gill (introduction) Roach, Joseph (appreciation) and West, Shearer (appreciation), The First Actresses: Nell Gwyn to Sarah Siddons, 2011 (accompanying the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from 20 October 2011 to 8 January 2012), p. 113

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Events of 1786back to top

Current affairs

Philosopher and politician Edmund Burke instigates impeachment proceedings against Warren Hastings, former Governor-General of Bengal after concerns about the moral standards of the British in India are raised.
Prime Minister William Pitt appoints commissioners for the reduction of the national debt and establishes a sinking fund of £1 million a year.
Government approves the establishment of a penal colony at Botany Bay.

Art and science

Robert Burns publishes Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect bringing him immediate success across the country.
Engraver and publisher John Boydell initiates plans for his Shakespeare Gallery in an effort to establish a school of British history painting.
Merchant David Dale establishes New Lanark in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, as a model cotton milling community.

International

General Charles Cornwallis succeeds Warren Hastings as Governor-General in India.
Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Marriage of Figaro premieres in Vienna.
Francisco Goya is appointed court painter to the Spanish king Charles III.

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