print
- Museum number
- 2010,7081.3322
- Description
-
A young woman sitting and pointing at a book open on her lap, for the benefit of a little boy who stands at her knee, supporting his head on his hands, while a little girl standing beind him on the left listens, bending her head over her sewing; after Mercier. 1743
Mezzotint
- Production date
- 1743
- Dimensions
-
Height: 274 millimetres
-
Width: 325 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- The composition was also engraved by Bernard Lens (2010,7081.3152).
Two versions of the painting are recorded by Ingamells and Raines in their catalogue of Mercier's work, as 'The Bible Lesson' (no.s 232 and 233); one in the collection of Myles Hildyard, the other in recorded in the Rothschild collection and before then in the collection of John Wanamaker, where it was ascribed to Chardin (E.C. Siter, 'John Wanamaker Catalogue of ... Pictures ...', n.d., c. 1904, no. 9).
- Location
- Not on display
- Acquisition date
- 2010
- Acquisition notes
- Acquired with the assistance of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the Friends of the British Museum, the Art Fund, Mrs Charles Wrightsman, the Michael Marks Charitable Trust, and numerous individual donors.
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 2010,7081.3322