Charles Dickens: Life and Legacy

A display to mark the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Dickens (1812-1870). Paintings, photographs, drawings and engravings, including portraits of the author, his family and influential contemporaries, chart the progress of Dickens's life and the legacy of the characters he created. The earliest portrait on display, by Daniel Maclise, shows the writer, age 26, enjoying his first taste of fame. Taken in 1858, two photographs by Herbert Watkins reveal the level of celebrity Dickens enjoyed by the mid-nineteenth century. Other exhibits illustrate his visits to America, his friendships with actors and a network of artist and novelist contemporaries.