Richard RedgraveBritish, 1804–1888Throwing off Her Weeds
Can I see it?
Yes, on view now
Where is “Throwing off Her Weeds” now? Victoria and Albert Museum, Paintings, Room 82, The Edwin and Susan Davies Galleries, London. Yes, on view now. Checked September 25, 2026.
London, United Kingdom
RoomPaintings, Room 82, The Edwin and Susan Davies Galleries
On public display.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
A young widow is impatient to discard her black mourning clothes (known as widow's weeds) because she has plans to marry again. The seamstress is showing her a lilac-coloured dress, a colour considered appropriate for a woman in the last phase of mourning. At this time, the mourning period for a husband was expected to be at least two years.
Originally the picture included a figure of a soldier, the widow's new suitor, entering through the doorway. Critics thought this was vulgar, and Redgrave painted the figure out, but he kept a number of other visual clues to suggest that the woman is soon to be married again: there is a bridal bonnet in the hat-box in the foreground, and a sprig of orange blossom (a flower which was usually worn or carried at weddings) on the dressing table.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Details
- Accession number
- FA.170[O]
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
