Woman at Her Toilet

Art Historical Context

" Woman at Her Toilet," an etching dated March 1, 1780, is attributed to Charles Reuben Ryley and John Hamilton Mortimer. This delicate print depicts a woman engaged in a private moment of grooming, a subject that highlights everyday domestic life. Now part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection in the Department of Drawings and Prints, the work measures roughly 10 by 9 inches and was acquired through the Harris Brisbane Dick Fund. Etching was a favored medium in late-18th-century Britain, allowing artists to create finely detailed images that could be reproduced affordably for a grow...