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Primary sourcePainting1854

Embley Park, Hampshire

Florence Nightingale · 1854

A pen and ink etching of Embley Park, the Nightingale family home in Hampshire, sketched by Florence Nightingale in 1854.

This etching of her family home was sketched by Nightingale herself, showing her artistic side.

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Pen and ink sketch of a large multi-gabled Tudor-style country house with tall chimneys, surrounded by trees and shrubs. Handwritten caption at bottom reads 'Embley, Hampshire' and 'Sketched by Florence Nightingale'.
Florence Nightingale, Embley Park, Hampshire, etching, 1854. Wellcome Collection.

About this source

What it is

This is a pen and ink sketch dated 1854, drawn by Florence Nightingale herself, showing Embley Park, her family's Tudor-style country house in Hampshire, with its tall chimneys and gabled roofline. It is held by the Wellcome Collection.

Why it matters

This etching shows a side of Nightingale beyond nursing: she was also an artist who recorded the places important to her. Embley Park was her family home, and the sketch gives a glimpse of the comfortable background she came from before she devoted her life to reforming hospital care.

Look closer

  • What does the care taken over architectural detail tell you about Nightingale's skills and interests?
  • Why might she have chosen to sketch her own home?
  • What does this source leave out about her later life and work?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Florence Nightingale on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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