More than 200 years after Jane Austen's death at the age of just forty-one, we are still looking for clues about this extraordinary writer's life. What might we learn if we take a glimpse inside the biographies of objects that crossed her path in life and afterwards
things that she cherished or cast aside, or that furnished the world in which she moved, or that have themselves been inspired by her legacy?
Among objects described in this book are a teenage notebook, a muslin shawl, a wallpaper fragment, a tea caddy, the theatrical poster for a play she attended and the dining-room grate at Chawton Cottage where she lived. Poignantly, the last manuscript page of her unfinished novel and a lock of hair kept by her devoted sister, Cassandra, are also featured. Objects contributing to Jane Austen's rich cultural legacy include a dinner plate decorated by Bloomsbury artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, Grayson Perry's commemorative pot from 2009 and Mr Darcy's wet shirt, worn by Colin Firth in the 1995 BBC adaptation.
This is a different kind of biography, in which objects with their own histories offer shifting entry points into Jane Austen's life. Each object
illustrated in colour
invites us to meet Jane Austen at a particular moment when her life intersects with theirs, speaking eloquently of past lives and shedding new light on one of our best-loved authors.
By:
Kathryn Sutherland (University of Oxford)
Imprint: Bodleian Library
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 210mm,
Width: 161mm,
ISBN: 9781851246267
ISBN 10: 1851246266
Pages: 224
Publication Date: 01 March 2025
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Contents Acknowledgements A chronology of Jane Austen Introduction: A life in objects Jane Austen: A life in objects 1 Portrait of Jane Austen, c. 1810 2 Mrs Austen to Mrs Walter, 20 August 1775 3 The Revd George Austen’s bookcase 4 ‘Volume the First’ 5 Marianne Knight’s dancing slippers 6 Marriage register, St Nicholas Church, Steventon 7 Betsy Hancock/Eliza de Feuillide 8 ‘Juvenile Songs & Lessons’: Jane Austen’s music book 9 A muslin shawl 10 The trial of Mrs Leigh Perrot 11 Silhouette of Cassandra Elizabeth Austen 12 A flower spray 13 Frances Burney, Camilla, 1796 14 A letter, 26–27 May 1801 15 Portrait of Jane Austen, 1804 16 Wallpaper fragment 17 Martha Lloyd’s Household Book 18 Austen family quilt 19 Jane Austen’s writing table 20 Four Wedgwood serving dishes 21 Theatre bill for The Clandestine Marriage, Covent Garden, 1813 104 22 Front door, 50 Albemarle Street, London 23 Emma, the Windsor Castle copy 24 A life in banknotes 25 Jane Austen’s pelisse 26 The Octagon Room, Bath 27 The donkey carriage 28 A lock of hair 29 Dining-room grate 30 A sermon scrap 31 Caroline Austen, ‘My Aunt Jane Austen’, 1867 32 The Cobb, Lyme Regis, Dorset 33 Chris Hammond, illustration for Sense and Sensibility, 1899 34 Memorial window, Winchester Cathedral 35 Danish translation of Pride and Prejudice, 1904 36 Jane Austen plate, Charleston, 1932–34 37 Rex Whistler’s costume designs for Pride and Prejudice, 1936 38 Mr Darcy’s shirt 39 A tea caddy 40 Grayson Perry, ‘Jane Austen in e17’, 2009 41 Last words Notes Further reading Image credits Index
Kathryn Sutherland is Senior Research Fellow, St Anne's College, Oxford.
Reviews for Jane Austen in 41 Objects
A stunning, sophisticated and thought-provoking journey through Austen's life, written by a world expert. This book is small but so, so beautiful, and utterly perfectly formed. -- Lucy Worsley, Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces and author Objects are witnesses to our lives. It’s wonderful to see the dancing slippers belonging to one of Jane Austen’s nieces, a scrap of wallpaper, a recipe book from Chawton. Taken all together they form a rich and lively picture of a life cut off too soon. Yes, we have the legacy of her novels, but it’s fascinating to experience more of the wider context of her life. Is there room in the world for another book about Jane Austen? Definitely – this one! -- Kate Atkinson MBE
