Elizabeth Garrett Anderson
- Artist: Caldesi & Co
- Date: 1870
- Medium: albumen carte-de-visite
- Dimensions: 3 1/2 in. x 2 1/4 in. (89 mm x 56 mm) image size
- Portrays: Elizabeth Garrett Anderson
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is a small albumen carte‑de‑visite from December 1870, created by the studio Caldesi & Co. You’ll see Elizabeth Garrett Anderson in a simple dress, her profile turned slightly toward the viewer; the subtle shadow beneath her chin and the smooth tonal range show how the albumen process captured light and detail on paper. The frame is just over three by two and a quarter inches, making this portrait feel very close‑up.
Caldesi & Co worked only a few years before 1874, producing eight such photographs in all. Anderson was not just a model; she became the first British woman to qualify as a doctor, later a suffragette who served as mayor in 1908—an early champion of women’s equality.
See it in person
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
