Eleanor B. Benson’s Leonardo da Vinci, after his self-portrait. Ambitious and adventurous young Englishwoman Eleanor B. Benson painted this miniature of a self-portrait by Leonardo da Vinci from the original on a trip abroad to Italy. Labelled on back: 'Leonardo da Vinci from the painting by himself in the Uffizi 3 Gallery, Florence painted by Eleanor B. Benson price £ - ' Below this label is a label from art supply purveyor ‘R. A. Ackermann Repository of Fine Art 191 Regent Street London.' (label partly torn) and has a small inventory numbering in top corner: The fact that this label includes a price suggests that the painting was exhibited for sale.

Rudolph Ackermann (junior) had been established in this location in 1825 by his father Rudolph Ackermann (senior). Ackermann senior had founded the family business in 1797, and came to specialise in manufacturing watercolour paints. He also started an art journal, The Repository of Arts, Literature and Fashions that was wildly influential with young women readers. In addition to offering a wide variety of paints and painting supplies for sale, R. A. Ackermann junior was also a publisher, stationer and printer. The business closed in 1855. The Ackermanns were known as key suppliers of materials to amateur women artists, including a box of watercolours and sketch pad belonging to Emily Brontë.

An accomplished amateur work. Oval watercolour image: approximately 6 x 5 cm, within a gilt and velvet frame 25 x 22 cm.

[Eleanor B. Benson may be Eleanor Bowes Benson (1833-1890), daughter of Edward White Benson and Harriet Baker Benson, and aunt of the writer Edward Frederic Benson (E. F. Benson). Eleanor Benson married Thomas Hare in 1872. Her sister Ada Benson (McDowell) founded Oxford High School, one of the Girls Public Day School Company schools, in 1874. Photo shown of girls in art class at Ada Benson’s Oxford High School]