A blog-post about the unearthing of the fourth —— and hopefully finalising ‘Bonnet Portrait’!
The ayes may not have it just yet —— but the eyes certainly do; soul gazing detail from the fourth ‘Bonnet Portrait’.
A few weeks ago, I happened upon another ‘Bonnet Portrait’ —— the fourth for sale on my favourite online marketplace – or hunting ground! This particular ‘red’ version was listed for sale by a true-gentleman art dealer that I’d had previous Brontë-related dealings with in February 2020. ‘Needless to say’ —— I’m a firm believer that lightening does strike twice – or in the case of the ‘Bonnet Portrait’ —— twice times twice…
…ëquals ‘The Fab Four’!
Initially, the ‘red’ version was listed with no mention of either Emily Brontë —— or Charlotte Brontë —— or the ‘Bonnet Portrait’…
The timely appearance of the above eBay listing triggered in me —— a decision to metaphorically stop chasing the ‘Bonnet’ butterfly…
19th century suspended animation in action. A de——light——ful detail from a genuine 1818 watercolour. I love the way the artist forgot to paint the handle of the basket – see the void between forearm and basket!
Thereby, I decided to share my awareness of the ‘Bonnet Portrait’ with the eBay seller in the hope that any new interest generated in the ‘red’ version of the ‘Bonnet’ would be good publicity for the ‘lost’ portrait cause! Of course, my intervention —— or angelic guidance as I prefer to think of it —— meant that I’d probably placed myself out of the bidding – but my loss was outweighed by possible ‘Bonnet’ gains!
And no, the above early bid wasn’t mine!
After a series of e-communications – the seller ended his initial listing of his own volition and relisted his painting again —— only with a renewed title and some ënlightened rewording. The text in this image can be enlarged in a new window by clicking on’t image! 
Despite a full ten day auction duration – the painting failed to generate any real interest and the portrait sold somewhat ‘disappointingly’ —— or put it another way, some you win and some you ‘lose’!
Now, I don’t doubt for one second that all four ‘Bonnet Portraits’ were created by Charlotte Brontë – and as fantastical as that may sound to some – I don’t see who else could have possibly created them, especially as all four versions share certain quirks – and all predate the ‘Bonnet Portrait’ photogravure in the ‘Woman at Home’ published in 1894 by a good half-century.
It’s clear that ‘The Fab Four’ are derived from Samuel Woodforde’s ‘Wood-Nymph’ – ‘copied’ from an engraving published in 1787; it’s what Charlotte did. She ‘meticulously’ copied engravings then made them her own by adding her own details —— and even ‘re-imagining’ the face; Emily’s face in the case of the ‘Bonnet’ Fab Four!
The ‘red’ version —— like the pencil drawing —— both have the sitter’s initials worked into the hair… 
Initials in the Hair. E.B. —— for sitter Emily Bronte. C.B. —— for artist, Charlotte Bronte.
Cryptic monogram ‘C.B.’ disguised in a curl of hair. Neither curl can possibly end in a ‘B’ shape if one follows both strands around to their natural ends.
Both the ‘red’ version and the pencil version —— are on J. Whatman watermarked paper; the significance only being that ‘J. Whatman’ was Charlotte’s paper of choice.
All ‘The Fab Four’ are drawn or ‘painted by numbers’ —— as in they all have teeny-weeny numbers ‘hidden’ about their person. The ‘red’ version illustrates this method of delicate shading and building up layers probably better than the other three. If one looks at the sitter’s nose one might be forgiven for thinking that her nose is covered in freckles – but if one looks closer it’s possible to discern that the ‘freckles’ are in fact numbers…
And then there are those soul gazing eyes —— enhanced here only by the slant of the light and that other magic ingredient so loved by Charlotte; Gum arabic! 
I think Charlotte tried to perfect her image of Emily through a progression of icon-like ‘Bonnet Portraits’; the first to be created was most likely the miniature —— circa 1830’s, followed by the more formal style portrait, the ‘blue’ version – which has a tiny date, 1837. The pencil version —— I believe is the ‘lost’ portrait seen by William Robertson Nicoll in Haworth, in 1879. The ‘red’ version is possibly Charlotte’s final attempt to capture something of the independent spirit, the superhuman element that was Emily —— and that’s why in the ‘red’ version Charlotte has afforded her sister amber-coloured eyes; they’re shamanic —— eagle eyes no less!
G. K. Chesterton was an English writer, philosopher, lay theologian, and literary and art critic – who wrote of Emily Brontë —— “Her imagination was sometimes superhuman——always inhuman,” and that “Wuthering Heights might have been written by an eagle.”
It would be easy to say that Chesterton’s description of Emily could have inspired any artist in Chesterton’s lifetime (1874 to 1936 ) —— to create the ‘red’ eagle-eyed version after the ‘Bonnet Portrait’ photogravure that was published in 1894 in the ‘Woman at Home’ – but that’s simply not possible because all four original ‘Bonnet Portraits’ were created in Charlotte’s lifetime —— definitely not Chesterton’s; science I know could prove this point!
We know Emily kept a pet hawk in her menagerie – a Merlin —— which in shamanic terms was clearly Emily’s spiritual animal…
And besides, it’s evidently clear that Charlotte had perfectly perceived the raptor-like flashes in Emily’s eyes long before Chesterton; one only need read the highlighted quote above and below —— Charlotte Bronte, of Shirley, Emily Bronte’s prototype…
Not being particularly well-read when it comes to Brontë books —— I have it on good authority from EmilyInGondal —— who is also a keen supporter of the ‘Bonnet Portrait’ —— that Emily Brontë herself described one of her Gondal characters as having ‘falcon eyes’.
I, for my part —— stick to ‘reading’ Brontë pictures. 