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Mrs. Lewis Thomas Watson (Mary Elizabeth Milles, 1767–1818)

1789
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 512
Mrs. Lewis Thomas Watson was an only daughter and an heiress. The painting is one of two versions; the other is presumed to be still in the family of her descendants. Even before the first was finished, the second was begun, ordered for or by the sitter’s father. Reynolds charged his standard price of one hundred guineas for each, indicating that both were in great part if not entirely painted by him. The white muslin dress and black satin hat were the height of fashion.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mrs. Lewis Thomas Watson (Mary Elizabeth Milles, 1767–1818)
  • Artist: Sir Joshua Reynolds (British, Plympton 1723–1792 London)
  • Date: 1789
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 50 x 40 in. (127 x 101.6 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Mrs. Harry Payne Bingham, 1986
  • Object Number: 1987.47.2
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

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