Sarah Capel-Coningsby, Countess of Essex (''née'' Bazett; 11 July 1759Diocese of St. Helena, Registers, 1680-1986
Wits University – 16 January 1838) was an English amateur artist. She specialised in making watercolour copies of old portraits of 16th century personages and other paintings, and her surviving copies in many instances are the only evidence of the now lost originals.The locations of many of the original paintings which she copied, as referenced in the Bridgeman Art Library, are no longer known. Over a hundred of her portraits in watercolour and gouache on paper were published in the 1825 edition of

Lucy Aikin Lucy Aikin (6 November 1781 – 29 January 1864) was an English historical writer, biographer and correspondent. She also published under pseudonyms such as Mary Godolphin. Her literary-minded family included her aunt Anna Laetitia Barbauld, a w ...

's ''Memoirs of the Court of Queen Elizabeth'', first published in 1818 as a two-volume work and re-issued in several editions (4th edition 181

further edition 1823). The fact that she frequently added the subject's coat of arms and other heraldic devices to her copy portraits suggests that she was knowledgeable in the field of

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...

Origins

She was born at

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

, the daughter of Henry William Bazett of St Helena by his wife Clarissa Penelope Pritchard.

Marriages

She married twice: *Firstly to Edward Stephenson. *Secondly, as his 1st wife, to

George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex FSA (13 November 1757 – 23 April 1839) was an English aristocrat and politician, and styled Viscount Malden until 1799. His surname was Capell until 1781. Early life George Capell was the eldest so ...

(d. 1839). In 1799 he succeeded to the titles

Baron Capell Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new crea ...

Viscount Malden A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

and

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

External links

*Bridgeman Art Library images of 121 works of "Essex, Sarah Countess of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Essex, Sarah Capel-Coningsby, Countess of 1759 births 1838 deaths English countesses 19th-century English painters English watercolourists Art copyists

Sarah Sarah (born Sarai) is a biblical matriarch and prophetess, a major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her character similarly, as that of a piou ...