John Player & Sons [tobacco : UK] "Miniatures" (June 1923) 5/25 - P644-230 : P72-111 : RB.17/127 : P/127
This set is an excellent example of art on cards though, for it shows accurate reproductions of painted miniatures by some of the leading artists through time, and includes their frames. The cards were first printed in 1916, and there is a strong belief that some cards were inserted into packets. However it was a short lived issue. After the First World War, the cards left over were released as their new issue, but sadly there is no way to tell which of the cards were issued in the first release.
Our original John Player Reference Book tells us that there are no colour varieties but there are proofs about, in red and/or yellow, with no wording and plain backs. There is no reference to these in the World Tobacco Issues Index, so either the supply dried up fast or they could not be tracked down in order to include them.
We have chosen this lovely card, which shows a much earlier beauty, the Countess of Eglinton. Whilst the card tells us of Sir Joshua Reynolds, it tells us nothing of the subject. Her name was Lady Jane Lindsey, and in the original picture she is full length and playing a harp. She was born in 1756 and she was the daughter of George, the twenty-first Earl of Crawford, as well as being the wife of the eleventh Earl of Eglinton, whose first name was Archibald. The picture was painted in 1777, and sadly, she died in 1778.
Or did she, for recent research suggests that this could either be a portrait of Lady Jean Lindsay, or Lady Joan Lindsay - or maybe even the twelfth Earl`s wife, Eleonora Hamilton.... You can read about that at Grand Ladies/Reynolds - and we will see what we can find out in the future!