The Mice in their Storeroom
Drawing
ca. 1891 (made)
ca. 1891 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.
Beatrix Potter made many imaginary drawings in the 1890s, before her books had been published. This highly finished drawing is known as ‘The Mice in their Storeroom’. Two mice are shown with sacks of grain and hanging ears of wheat, one of the mice holding a bunch of keys. The Potter scholar Leslie Linder noted that the setting of the scene was based on ‘one of the back passages at Bedwell Lodge’, Hertfordshire, which Beatrix Potter visited in the summer of 1891. A detailed study Potter made of the back stairs at Bedwell Lodge in the collection is dated 21 September 1891 and corresponds with the background. The potting shed at Bedwell Lodge would later inspire Potter’s illustration of Mr McGregor’s tool-shed in The Tale of Peter Rabbit.
There is also a preparatory study for this drawing in the collection.
Beatrix Potter made many imaginary drawings in the 1890s, before her books had been published. This highly finished drawing is known as ‘The Mice in their Storeroom’. Two mice are shown with sacks of grain and hanging ears of wheat, one of the mice holding a bunch of keys. The Potter scholar Leslie Linder noted that the setting of the scene was based on ‘one of the back passages at Bedwell Lodge’, Hertfordshire, which Beatrix Potter visited in the summer of 1891. A detailed study Potter made of the back stairs at Bedwell Lodge in the collection is dated 21 September 1891 and corresponds with the background. The potting shed at Bedwell Lodge would later inspire Potter’s illustration of Mr McGregor’s tool-shed in The Tale of Peter Rabbit.
There is also a preparatory study for this drawing in the collection.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Mice in their Storeroom |
| Materials and techniques | pen and ink with grey wash on paper |
| Brief description | Drawing, 'The Mice in their Storeroom', by Beatrix Potter, ca.1891; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.1021. |
| Physical description | A highly finished pen and ink and wash drawing showing two mice in a passage, with sacks of grain and ears of wheat on the left and store cupboards on the right; the front mouse holds a ring of keys. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Production type | Unique |
| Credit line | Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number] |
| Object history | Drawn by Beatrix Potter, most likely at Bedwell Lodge in the summer of 1891. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale. Beatrix Potter made many imaginary drawings in the 1890s, before her books had been published. This highly finished drawing is known as ‘The Mice in their Storeroom’. Two mice are shown with sacks of grain and hanging ears of wheat, one of the mice holding a bunch of keys. The Potter scholar Leslie Linder noted that the setting of the scene was based on ‘one of the back passages at Bedwell Lodge’, Hertfordshire, which Beatrix Potter visited in the summer of 1891. A detailed study Potter made of the back stairs at Bedwell Lodge in the collection is dated 21 September 1891 and corresponds with the background. The potting shed at Bedwell Lodge would later inspire Potter’s illustration of Mr McGregor’s tool-shed in The Tale of Peter Rabbit. There is also a preparatory study for this drawing in the collection. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Other number | LB.1021 - Linder Bequest catalogue no. |
| Collection | |
| Library number | BP.430 |
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| Record created | July 29, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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