The painting of Lady Lavery is symbolic because the face of the lady was to adorn the Irish pound note for half a century. The canvas which was begun in 1892 was originally a portrait of Mrs William Burrell. It was transformed in 1912 into a portrait of Sarah Bernhardt, and was for a short time a portrait of Viscountess Curzon. The Irish Government invited Lavery to paint a portrait of his wife so that the image could adorn the new Irish currency.
