Figure of Mrs. Catherine Macaulay 1772 - 1775

This porcelain figure of Mrs. Catherine Macaulay was made by the Chelsea Factory, though the precise date remains unknown. Macaulay was an English historian and political commentator who championed radical Whig and republican causes. The figure links her identity as a writer to the politics of liberty. Note the books on which she rests her arm and the papers she holds, inscribed with lines that praise her as an advocate for freedom. Consider how the pedestal is inscribed with references to American Congress, Dickinson, and Liberty, a direct association with the American Revolution and its ideals. Made in England, this object is of great interest because it illustrates the impact of radical political thought on popular culture and the interest taken by British citizens in the cause of American independence. To understand the figure more fully, scholars might research eighteenth-century print culture and the circulation of political ideas. These resources reveal how art became a vehicle for expressing political beliefs and challenging established norms.