A painting of Lucy Walter's head hangs in the drawing room at Scolton Manor, a Victorian house in Pembrokeshire – a head without a body.

Lucy Walter was born in 1630 at Roch Castle, Pembrokeshire. According to D'Aulnoy's Memoirs of the Court of England (1675), she was a mistress and alleged wife to Charles II. Also known under the alias Barlow, she has posthumously been used as a pawn for political division, identified alternately as a loving mother and a courtesan of lowly birth.

James II claimed that Algernon Sidney purchased her for 50 gold pieces, missing out on his 'bargain' whilst away with the military. The diarist John Evelyn described her as 'a beautiful, bold but insipid creature' – surmising conventional societal expectations for women.

Like similar 'Windsor Beauties' by Peter Lely – to whom the portrait is attributed – the dimensions and composition suggest that this head may have been cut from a three-quarter-length portrait, coincidentally reflecting the beheading of her son, James Scott.

James Scott, Duke of Monmouth and Buccleuch

Scott, the Duke of Monmouth and Buccleuch, had berated his executioner for taking several strikes on previous executions, only to befall the same fortune himself. A debunked myth claimed that his head was later sewn back onto his body. This unusual portrait showing an isolated head against a dark background was once believed to be Scott on his deathbed.

Unknown man, formerly known as James Scott, Duke of Monmouth and Buccleuch

Accompanying her son's legend, this story attempts to theoretically 'stitch a body' to the head – figuratively re-embodying Lucy Walter – by exploring her portrait, alongside other little-known paintings of women by women in Scolton's collection.

Other portraits of Lucy Walter

Few portraits of Walter survive. In 1944, historian Allan Fea purchased this portrait by Lely of a woman holding pearls, believing it showed Lucy Walter. The portrait, he claimed, related to Charles II's gifting her a pearl necklace. O. R. Bagot later corrected this, claiming the portrait was of Dorothy Grahme and that her dress was the fashion some ten years past Walter's death.

Similarly sized to Scolton's portrait is the painting of Lucy Walter at Abbotsford House, previously home of Sir Walter Scott. This portrait has been in the collection since at least 1825 and portrays Lucy as a young shepherdess. Dressing up as a shepherdess was a common way for women of the time to be depicted outside of traditional portrait conventions.

Lucy Walter (1630–1658), as a Shepherdess

This may be a variant copy of an untraced portrait previously owned by Mrs Mary Sophia Paynter of Tenby, which came from Dale Castle. George Steinman described the portrait as depicting a young Walter as a shepherdess with a crook in one hand, and – conversely to the Abbotsford portrait – in the process of removing a mask.

Jemima Nicholas and the surrender of the French at Fishguard

Jemima Nicholas – or Jemima Fawr – was a Pembrokeshire-born shoemaker, commended for her actions during the last French invasion of mainland Britain in 1797. Reportedly, Jemima single-handedly captured 12 French soldiers and, in disguise, rallied local women to march around the Bigney – a prominent hill in Fishguard – which led to the French surrender.

Nicholas wears a red cloak with a pitchfork in hand in the bottom left corner of the painting. With strength and brutality, she represents beauty and boldness through bravery. It is unconventional in its portrayal of women but certainly a thought-provoking representation.

The painting is currently on loan to Scolton from Carmarthenshire Museum. The artist and date are unknown, but it was originally in the Middleton Hall Collection. The painting influenced contemporary artist Elizabeth Cramp when designing the Last Invasion, an embroidery project inspired by the Bayeux tapestry, stitched by 70 local women in Fishguard in 1997.

Portrait of Fanny Higgon by Maria Isabella Pitt

Before becoming the Pembrokeshire County Museum, Scolton was once the residence of the Higgon family. Between 1850 and 1852, a talented but little-known miniaturist Maria Isabella Pitt painted the family. As with the other artists discussed here, Pitt's history is fragmented and incomplete. Catriona Hilditch, the Collections Officer at Scolton, kindly provided me with the below information from her own research.

Pitt met Fanny Higgon at finishing school in London, and became friends with the family, later painting their portraits. Born in 1817, Pitt was 33 when she painted the family. Fanny Higgon was 31.

Pitt's portrait of Fanny Higgon is careful yet sentimental. Her left side leans passively against a ledge, whilst the body language of her right side is more controlled. Her right arm is positioned in front of her, with her index finger pointing as she clutches the black lace that enshrouds her hips. This causes a subtle contrast with the soft pink petals of the rose that she grasps with her fingertips.

In the family's letters and journals, Higgon seems vivacious though her portrait doesn't communicate her lively character, and later photographs were similarly straight-faced.

The family was pleased with their portraits, and Pitt's skill can be observed through comparisons with Higgon's real-life bertha collar, and the jewellery – also on display at Scolton – seen in Frances Higgon's portrait.

Portrait of Lurline May Higgon by Beatrice Bright

Scolton's collection highlights several talented yet underappreciated female artists – another example is Beatrice Bright. Born in London in 1861, Bright was an accomplished painter, exhibiting widely. Unfortunately, not much information is available about her life.

Bright painted a number of portraits throughout her career, but that of Lurline Higgon is her only female portrait on Art UK. The portrait shows the influence of her seascapes, painted during her time in Cornwall between 1909 and 1914. Lurline Moses was an Australian socialite, who married into the Higgon family in 1900. Her expression is reticent, but – like Walter's portrait – a smile lingers at the corner of her lips.

She holds a bouquet of blue flowers in one hand, while the other curls over her seat. Her pearls subtly hint at the sea, as do the highlights of the tide-like patterns that clash and swirl on her gown. A diaphanous fabric rests over her bosom like a sea mist, and a darker mass of blue ripples in the background drapery. Through Bright's portrayal, the figure of Lurline surfaces from an expressive seascape: an outer evocation of inner vibrancy.

Portrait of Lady Gwilym Lloyd George (Lady Tenby) by Margaret Lindsay Williams

Beatrice Bright studied under Arthur Cope – as did fellow artist Margaret Lindsay Williams. Born in Cardiff in 1888, Williams was the third woman, the first Welsh artist, and the youngest student at age 23 to be awarded a gold medal from the Royal Academy in 1911. She was a portraitist of royal and high-ranking officials but was not permitted to be an official war artist; this was a position generally reserved for men due to the dangers of the front line.

Lady Gwilym Lloyd George (1990–1971), Lady Tenby

In her memoirs, Williams recounted the importance of resembling life with sincerity and said her portraits were 'governed by the sitter'. Edna Gwenfron Jones became Lady Tenby (Lady Gwilym Lloyd George) by marriage in 1921. Radiating warmth in tone and expression, she sits turned towards us, her hands in her lap, creating an intimate loop that directs our attention to her eyes. Williams' use of orange and warm greens evokes the sunset on a summer afternoon. An encounter between the sitter and the artist seems to unfold on the canvas.

Discover more at Scolton

Built in 1840, Scolton Manor has become an important site within the local community and is highly deserving of a visit. Looking into its historic portraits of women has unveiled many historical layers, including its diverse collection of historically undervalued artists.

Natasha Toms, artist-researcher in residence at Scolton Manor

This content was supported by Welsh Government funding

Further reading

John Evelyn, The Diary of John Evelyn, 1879

Angela Gaffney, Wedded to her Art: Margaret Lindsay Williams 1889–1960, Canolfan Uwchefrydiau Cymreig a Cheltaidd Prifysgol Cymru, 1999

George Steinman, Althorp Memoirs, 1869

Margaret Lindsay Williams, 'Life was my canvas', Western Mail, 1960