John Hamilton Mortimer. Ophelia, 1775.


Pen and ink, oval drawing approximately 11 x 13 inches. The Victoria and Albert Museum.


One of "Twelve Heads" depicting characters from Shakespeare. Other heads include Edgar, Lear, Caliban, Richard II, Shylock, and the Poet. John Hamilton Mortimer's engraving of Ophelia depicts her in white, with a crown of flowers and a basket of rue, rosemary and flowers under her arm. The slightly parted lips and the vacant eyes and expression suggest something of her distraction.