Samuel Cotes (British, 1734-1818) Portrait of Mrs Mary Knowles, a Quakeress signed "S Cotes px. 1797" to the right of the sitter's shoulder pastel h:60 w:45 cm Provenance: Mrs Murray Tuke, The Vineyard, Saffron Walden, Essex; Her sale, Robinson, Fisher and Co., 25 June 1908 (old catalogue entry to the reverse refers) Other Notes: Mary Knowles (1733-1807) was remembered by her friends as many things - literary lady, patriot, artist and Quaker. She was born into a long established Quaker family but from an early age expressed her individuality - she asserted her right to choose her own husband, writing the pamphlet, "Memoirs of MM, Spinster of the Parish", which included an essay, "The Pudding Making Mortal". In this essay she argued that since "accidents may happen to the best puddings in the world", every housewife should be taught Science. Mary Knowles eventually married a fellow Quaker at the relatively old age of 34. She established a needlework school in Buckinghamshire and developed a new form of needlework known as "needle painting", where the stitches replicated the appearance of a painted subject through crewel embroidery and the use of Worsted wool stitches to represent brush strokes. The art form came to the attention of Her Majesty Queen Charlotte who commissioned Mrs Knowles to create a needle painting copy of a portrait of George III by Zoffany. The Royal Family were so pleased with the result that they paid her £800 which Mary Knowles used to enable her husband to study medicine. Once qualified, she and her husband moved to London where she became friends with Queen Charlotte. She moved in literary circles, clashing with Samuel Johnson over the right to freedom of religion. In addition to her support for her Quaker faith, she continued to publish poetry and pamphlets supporting the rights of women and the abolition of slavery.
Samuel Cotes (British, 1734-1818) Portrait of Mrs Mary Knowles, a Quakeress signed "S Cotes px. 1797" to the right of the sitter's shoulder pastel h:60 w:45 cm Provenance: Mrs Murray Tuke, The Vineyard, Saffron Walden, Essex; Her sale, Robinson, Fisher and Co., 25 June 1908 (old catalogue entry to the reverse refers) Other Notes: Mary Knowles (1733-1807) was remembered by her friends as many things - literary lady, patriot, artist and Quaker. She was born into a long established Quaker family but from an early age expressed her individuality - she asserted her right to choose her own husband, writing the pamphlet, "Memoirs of MM, Spinster of the Parish", which included an essay, "The Pudding Making Mortal". In this essay she argued that since "accidents may happen to the best puddings in the world", every housewife should be taught Science. Mary Knowles eventually married a fellow Quaker at the relatively old age of 34. She established a needlework school in Buckinghamshire and developed a new form of needlework known as "needle painting", where the stitches replicated the appearance of a painted subject through crewel embroidery and the use of Worsted wool stitches to represent brush strokes. The art form came to the attention of Her Majesty Queen Charlotte who commissioned Mrs Knowles to create a needle painting copy of a portrait of George III by Zoffany. The Royal Family were so pleased with the result that they paid her £800 which Mary Knowles used to enable her husband to study medicine. Once qualified, she and her husband moved to London where she became friends with Queen Charlotte. She moved in literary circles, clashing with Samuel Johnson over the right to freedom of religion. In addition to her support for her Quaker faith, she continued to publish poetry and pamphlets supporting the rights of women and the abolition of slavery.
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