Sibella Rice (early 19th Century)

A very personal collection of watercolour sketches of the costume of the Ionian Islands made by Sibella Rice, wife of Colonel Rice who was stationed on the Islands of Corfu, Cephalonia and Zante during the islands sojourn as a dependency of the British (1815-1864). It is interesting to note that one of the drawings appears to depict Teresa Macri, the girl that is thought to have inspired Lord Byron's poem, the "Maid of Athens". During his eight month stay in Athens, Bryon lodged with the family of Dr Nicolas Macri, formerly consular-agent for Great Britain in Athens, and whilst at the house is recorded as endlessly scribbling verses on bits of paper, which he often left carelessly about. The ten year old Teresa collected some of these papers, amongst which was the poem, as a simple memento of Byron's stay with the family. Ten years later the Marcri family fled Athens as result of the Greek War of Independence and sought protection from the British on the island of Corfu. Teresa, now twenty years old and the rest of her family were well known in the circles of English society in Corfu and it is at this point that Sibella Rice would have met the young Teresa.