The Indian Queen [Anne Bracegirdle]

by William Vincent
ca. 1690s

British Museum 2010,7081.334

From the British Museum curator's comments:

The subject was identified by Chaloner Smith as the heroine of 'The Indian Queen' by Robert Howard and John Dryden, first performed in 1664; Chaloner Smith also suggested that the actress was Anne Bracegirdle. More recent sources, however, identify the play as Aphra Benn's 'The Widow Ranter' (1688), in which Bracegirdle played Semernia, an Indian queen, although that was a breeches part (see ODNB).