Study of Right and Left Hands of Clothed Poor Woman Receiving Jewels for "Saint Christina" 1904

Curator: Evelyn De Morgan, a prominent Pre-Raphaelite artist, created this preparatory study, "Study of Right and Left Hands of Clothed Poor Woman Receiving Jewels for 'Saint Christina'," for a larger painting. Editor: There’s something so raw and devotional about these hands. They remind me of offerings or benedictions—the gesture is so open, so vulnerable. Curator: Precisely. De Morgan situates the hands within a specific historical and social context, highlighting themes of poverty, piety, and the complex relationship between material wealth and spiritual grace. Editor: I love how the hands, despite being studies, feel like portraits in themselves. You can almost imagine the story etched into their lines. It makes you wonder, what jewels are we really talking about here, anyway? Curator: That ambiguity is key, prompting reflection on notions of value and worth assigned to both the giver and the receiver within a Victorian framework. Editor: It’s truly amazing how much narrative can be conveyed with just a couple of hands, isn’t it?