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Isabella, Countess of Hertford
Alexander Roslin Swedish
Not on view
The sitter’s formal French gown is most likely the grand habit commissioned for her presentation at Versailles on November 20, 1763. The wife of the British ambassador experienced great anxiety at the event, which may have been caused by the difficulty of moving gracefully in a cumbersome court dress. The diamond jewelry was reputedly valued at sixty thousand pounds. Her husband reported that Lady Hertford was magnificently prepared for the ceremony, her dress beautiful, and the retinue of pages, officers, and servants in livery all outfitted for the "nobly done" occasion.
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