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# Long description

This painting shows a couple sitting on either side of an ornate table: a young man, Mr Ralph Izard, on the left; Mrs Izard is on the right. Mr Izard wears a fawn-coloured coat, waistcoat and breeches; his wife wears a blue silk gown and a white lace head covering over auburn hair. Slightly turned outward, he leans across the table with his left arm, holding a drawing in his left hand. She leans across the table towards him, her right arm is bent so that her hand touches her chin; her other arm is stretched across the table, with her index finger touching the paper. The setting is lavish: Mr Izard sits on an elaborately carved golden chair upholstered in red patterned silk; Mrs Izard sits on a sofa in the same style. A swathe of red-pink silk fills the picture space behind her. In the centre middle distance is a classical statue consisting of two figures: the tall male figure appears to be comforting or counselling a shorter figure. Next to the left border and in shadow is a large red figure vase; directly behind Mr Izard, also in dark shade, is a pedestal supporting the base of a rising column. In the far distance are the remains of the Colosseum under sweeping clouds and a darkening sky.