Charles TURNER after John James HALL.

M.r Kean in Richard the Third
Act IV. Scene 4. _ Well, as you guess!

Mezzotint, published c.1814.
Plate size 25½ x 15 inches, framed.

Edmund Kean (1787-1833), actor, regarded in his time as the greatest ever. The National Portrait gallery describes him as "unrivalled in tragic parts, most notably Richard III".

Although undated the print is likely to have been published in 1812 because it is dedicated to the brewer & MP for Bedford, Samuel Whitbread. It was Whitbread who started a committee after the Drury Lane Theatre caught fire in 1809 and was burnt to the ground leaving debts of £500,000! He used his political connections to raise the funds that enabled the theatre to be rebuilt and reopen so this print is dedicated to him in recognition of his endeavours.