Lady Charlotte Harley, later Lady Charlotte Bacon (1801-1880), as Hebe

Richard Westall, RA (Hertford 1765 - London 1836). Oil painting on canvas, Lady Charlotte Harley, later Lady Charlotte Bacon (1801-1880) as Hebe by Richard Westall, RA (Hertford 1765 - London 1836), circa 1821. Labelled on the reverse: 'Ricd Westall R.A. No 4 portrait of a young lady of (?) twenty'. Full-length portrait of a young woman, as Hebe kneeling to the right, head turned to the left, in a white dress, a golden bowl held in her left hand from which an eagle is drinking- her left hand held up to a pair of doves. At her side Jupiter's eagle cranes its neck to drink. Hebe and the eagle of Jupiter was a common theme in the 18th century; the goddess was usually pictured with a jug in one hand, from which she has just poured nectar into a cup. Daughter to Jupiter and Juno, she was goddess of youth , and according to myth she married Hercules after his ascent to Olympus. She was the cupbearer to the gods and was frequently illustrated as winged and bearing a wine-vessel. The theme of Hebe and the eagle of Jupiter was common in the 18th century and was used as an instrument for female portraiture, flattering the sitter by insinuating that she shares Hebe's youth and beauty. , Treasurer's House, North Yorkshire