This drawing was made over 200 years ago and is called 'The Guardian Angel'. It shows an angel holding a sleeping baby.

It seems to be a copy of one which the artist, Cosway, first made in 1794. At this time Cosway was the favourite miniaturist and personal friend of the Prince of Wales. This second copy may have been made to celebrate the birth of Princess Charlotte, the Prince of Wales' only child.

Though clearly intended as an angel, the figure reflects the time in which it was created. Rather than being a timeless figure, as we imagine an angel would be, it is dressed in classical drapery and hairstyle (the Neoclassical style) as was popular at the time. By the 1790s people were acutely aware of alarming changes in their world, particularly the French Revolution, and the vulnerability of children. Images of heaven, angels and holy children became increasingly frequent in prints, exhibitions and literature: as William Blake put it in "A Cradle Song" (1789),

"Sweet sleep with soft down, weave thy brows and infant crown.
Sweet sleep, Angel mild hover o'er my happy child."

As well as possibly commemorating the birth of Princess Charlotte, the drawing may have been intended to capture the innocence of childhood at a time when this was felt to be necessary.

The strength of this drawing lies in its composition in which the encircling arm draws the eye round to the solidly planted leg supporting the sleeping baby; the rounded limbs create a rhythmic pattern. The intimate relationship of the two faces reminds us of images of the Madonna and Child.