Portrait of Emmeline Pankhurst by Georgina Brackenbury

What it is

This is an oil painting of Emmeline Pankhurst made around 1927 by Georgina Brackenbury, a British painter who was herself a militant suffragette and had been jailed for the cause. It is held by the National Portrait Gallery in London.

It shows an elderly woman with short curled grey hair wearing a dark dress with a fur-trimmed wrap, an enamel pendant, and a ring.

Why it matters

This is described as the only major painted portrait of Pankhurst from her lifetime. Brackenbury knew Pankhurst personally, followed her into more militant tactics, and later acted as one of her pallbearers. The portrait was bought for the nation by Pankhurst's memorial committee after her death, showing how her movement wanted her remembered.

Look closer

• Why might a fellow activist, rather than a professional society portraitist, have been chosen to paint this?
• What does the clothing and jewellery suggest about the image Pankhurst wished to present?
• Why was this portrait bought specifically by a memorial committee?