Cosmic Tea Story

This is a story of a strange little series of coincidences.  It's not really coffee or tea related, although it does have to do with my love of tea and history and tea culture.

In my early twenties I fell in love with Jane Austen.  My favorite was Pride and Prejudice, which came on tv as episodes in 1983.  This began my obsession with all British tea customs and culture, and having a proper tea party was my greatest love.  I even got into antique costuming for a while there.

That same year a friend and I were having lunch at a local restaurant.  She came back from the bathroom wide-eyed and giggly, and told me I just had to "come see".  I thought there must have been something really whacky in the potty from her manner, but she led me to a hallway and stopped before a row of pictures hanging on the wall.  I scanned them, confused, but then my eye stopped on one, and my jaw dropped too.  We stood there gaping, and a waitress came by to see what we were doing.  She gaped.  A few more patrons wandered by, and pretty soon we had a little gaping gathering in the hallway.

There was this portrait hanging on the wall, of a young woman in the early 1800's, that was the spitting image of me. 

The restaurant owner didn't know anything about the picture's origins, or the artist, or the subject.  Of course I had all kinds of youthful romantic imaginings of unknown ancestry or maybe even reincarnation breadcrumbs.  I begged him to sell me the picture, but he wouldn't.  He did, however, let me take it to a photographer to have it reproduced, and when we removed it from the frame, there on the back was the artist's name - Thomas Lawrence.

I was able to do some research from that little snippet of information and found the woman's name.  Rosamond Hester Elizabeth Croker, born Rosamond Pennell in 1810 in Ireland , later adopted by her sister and brother-in-law, John Croker.  This painting was done in 1827, when our Rosie-girl was only 17.  Sadly, there's not much more to be found about her, even with the advent of the internet.  She married Sir George Barrow, and as Lady Barrow gave birth to 8 children.

The portrait copy is now hanging in my dining room, right over my prize possession, a 1906 sideboard and silver tea set.  Of course, I don't look like that anymore, but it's still a fun story to tell when people ask me why I have a picture of a stranger from the 1800's hanging in my dining room.

And that's not the end of the story. 

A few years after all this happened, a new copy of Pride and Prejudice was issued, and the picture on the cover was ... yep, Rosie girl. 

Of course I bought a copy.  What delightful serendipity, to have "my" face on the cover of my favorite book.

Comments

[Cin]

What a fabulous story! I think I might actually own that copy of P&P as well...

[Zeb Trout]

That is a great story. btw I like your website very much, too. I don't think I've ever commented here before, but I do stop by every few days and I have purloined a couple of recipes, too.

Keep up the good work!

[David]

That is cool!

[Steph W.]

Wow - that is really a cool story! Thank you for sharing!

[keewee]

I love this story,the likeness of you and Rosamond, certainly is extraordinary. How wonderful to have a copy of the picture in your dining room.