Sir Edwin Landseer (1802-1873) was one of the most popular and successful painters of 19th-century Britain. He is best known as an animal painter, and his anatomical studies of animals, in addition to his exceptional gifts as a draughtsman, brought a great degree of accuracy to his drawings and paintings. Landseer often introduced a narrative element into his animal pictures, and his dogs in particular are often invested with anthropomorphic qualities.

Landseer was also in demand as a portrait painter, and indeed he was commissioned several times by Queen Victoria to produce portraits of herself and her family. This graceful chalk drawing of a woman reading a letter has not been connected to a particular portrait, although it is possible that it represents Georgiana, Duchess of Bedford, a close friend of the artist, who Landseer drew and painted on many occasions. Landseer often used unusual poses for his figure drawings. Although here the woman's face is turned away, her elegant posture combined with her absorption in the letter she holds combine to make an expressive portrait.