‡Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967)

‡Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967)

At the Mermaid Tavern

Inscribed At the Mermaid Tavern (lower centre)

Pencil and watercolour within pencil framing lines

21 x 19.6cm

Unframed

Provenance:

Siegfried Sassoon;

And by family descent

In this work, Siegfried Sassoon has depicted William Shakespeare (1564-1616). The Mermaid Tavern was on Cheapside during the Elizabethan era, and was the site of a drinking club which included some of the period's leading literary figures. Popular tradition has it that Shakespeare was a member of the group, although modern scholars think it unlikely.