The Face of Jane Austen (Artistic Reconstruction)

Project requested by: MissVolturigirl, Sirius Metta, Master Piece Princess, Judi Doyle, Sandra Bast, & Linda Baron

Jane Austen (b. December 16, 1775 - d. July 18, 1817) Aged 41.

18th century novelist most popularly known for her books "Sense and Sensibility", "Pride and Prejudice", and "Emma" to name a few. She did not experience much fame in her lifetime, and her illness, variously suspected to be anything from Addison's disease to Hodgkin's Lymphoma, cut her life short at the age of 41.

ARTIST NOTES: Yes, there is indeed an existing wax figure of Jane Austen created by FBI-trained forensic artist Melissa Dring and sculpted by Mark Richards along with costume designer Andrea Galer. I can see that Melissa followed the trail that we all would follow: the family tree. Existing portraits of her father and brothers tended to show long, angular faces with small, tight-lipped mouths and blushing cheeks. Only a silhouette of Jane's sister Cassandra is available, with a similar silhouette being attributed to Jane herself. There is the notable 1810 hand-drawn portrait of Jane by Cassandra but her artistic skills were a bit limited.

So, on to historical records. Jane Austen had been described by onlookers as having had brown curly hair, brown (or hazel) eyes, having a long, straight nose, and a clear rosy complexion with full round cheeks which gave her tall figure a healthy appearance. For all that, she was not described as being any sort of beauty, and was brushed off as being "not much of a looker". Her sister's portrait of her might lend itself to that conclusion as well, were it not for the fact that a niece later said that the drawing looked "hideously unlike" Jane Austen herself.

My conclusion from this hodgepodge is that Jane Austen took after her father and brothers' features in that her nose was long and a bit pointed and her chin was a bit too sharp for the fashion of the day. Other portraits by artists later in history seem to shorten both of these features but leave the small mouth and round cheeks intact. Her father and brothers had rather "droopy" eyes housed in really round eye sockets, which her sister seemed to have tried to capture in her sketch, as well, so I incorporated that detail.

***No, I did not include the infamous "mobcap" hat for this portrait. She may always have worn it, but here it would have been a distraction more than an asset.

"Jane Austen" 2020. Original Digital Art © M.A. Ludwig

Music "Autumn Sunlight" from album "Grandeur" © 2011 Composed & performed by
M.A. Ludwig

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