Mary Harvey

Description

Portrait of Mary Harvey, aged 24, three-quarter-length, in a black dress and hat with a lace collar and cuffs, holding a prayer book in her right hand, beside a candle on a table. This portrait is one of a group of members of the family of Dr. William Harvey (1578-1657), discoverer of the circulation of the blood. William Harvey had no children, but had six brothers. A family tree of the Harvey family has been published by A. Sakula but this does not include any reference to a 'Mary Harvey' with dates that correlate to those inscribed in this portrait, but she is presumably a neice. Sakula records a number of portraits of members of the family, including one of Dr. William Harvey, as in the collection of Andrew F. Lloyd. Oil on panel, in a modern gilt-composition frame. Was exhibited while on loan to the Royal College of Physicians, circa 1954.