Taming the Shrew (The Pretty Horsebreaker)
This print is based on a painting that Landseer exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1861 as "The Shrew Tamed." Adapted from Shakespeare's play, the title here refers to a mettlesome horse tamed by a female equestrienne and the work shows a young woman wearing a dark riding habit lying against the side of her now docile mount in a barn. The likely sitter was Annie Gilbert, a famed horsewoman and friend of Landseer's. In his diary, the artist wrote "A.G. has no end of lovers, but seems to patronize me! I suppose she thinks my Picture will be a trump card for her." Contemporaries speculated that the work instead represented Catherine "Skittles" Walters, mistress of the Prince of Wales and one of the "pretty horsebreakers" who attracted public attention riding in Hyde Park, and that led to later confusion about the sitter's identity.
Artwork Details
- Title: Taming the Shrew (The Pretty Horsebreaker)
- Artist: After Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (British, London 1802–1873 London)
- Engraver: James Stephenson (British, Manchester 1808–1886 London)
- Publisher: Henry Graves & Co. (British, active 1827–1926)
- Date: 1863
- Medium: Mixed method engraving with mezzotint; proof before letters
- Dimensions: Chine: 24 13/16 × 36 1/2 in. (63 × 92.7 cm)
Sheet: 25 1/4 × 37 1/4 in. (64.1 × 94.6 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949
- Object Number: 49.40.237
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer
ca. 1817–20
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer
August 8, 1848
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer
J. Marshall
19th century
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer
1871
Multiple artists/makers
1878 (?)
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.