The Recalcitrant Sculptress

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"There are some things we were not meant to know, they say. But you wouldn't be down here if you took that seriously."

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"She rarely leaves the Palace Cellars where, by means of high-pitched glassy ululations, she assures you she is quite comfortable. But occasionally you receive a small ornament, fringed with glass feathers at your lodgings. A token of her esteem."[1]

The Recalcitrant Sculptress is the sixth child of the Empress and her Consort. A gifted artist and adept code-cracker,[2] she has since withdrawn into the cellars beneath the Shuttered Palace, alongside her siblings.

Thanks to the effects of a contaminated batch of red honey, the Sculptress takes the form of a gaunt figure cloaked in a mantle of glass feathers,[3] with long talons[4] and a ruff[4] that could be taken for an Elizabethan collar.[5] She rarely emerges from the Palace's cellars, but at Hallowmas she walks the streets, disguising her fearsome visage as a festive masquerade.[5] She cannot speak, with any attempts instead producing a squawk[5] or some kind of glassy chime,[6] but can still write.[6] She also still creates sculptures, which appear to be crude and warped representations of humans.[7]

A ring that once belonged to the Sculptress, received as a gift from her mother, now rests in a display case at the Brass Thistle in the Hinterlands.[8]

Historical Inspirations

Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll (1848-1939), christened Louisa Caroline Alberta, was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Known for her intelligence, artistic talent, and progressive views, she led a life that often defied the conventions of her royal status. She was raised and educated by her father, and after showing early aptitude in the arts (particularly sculpture), she was allowed to study at the National Art Training School (now the Royal College of Art). This made her one of the first royals to receive professional art education. Although she depicted a variety of subjects over her career, she produced several statues of her mother, the most famous of which can still be seen at Kensington Gardens.

Louise adamantly refused to marry a prince, so in 1871, she married John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne — a mere nobleman who was the heir to the Dukedom of Argyll (in Scotland). They did not have children, which contributed to an often strained marriage. Lorne served as Governor General of Canada from 1878-1883, with Louise serving as his viceregal consort; the province of Alberta was later named after Louise, as well as landmarks in the province like Lake Louise and Mount Alberta.

A strong advocate for the arts and women's education, Louise supported institutions like the Edinburgh College of Domestic Science, serving as its first Patron from 1891 until her death in 1939. She was also involved in the feminist movement of her time. Louise joined Edward VII's court after Queen Victoria's death in 1901, and after Lorne's death in 1914 she gradually withdrew from public life. She died at Kensington Palace in 1939, at the age of 91.

References

  1. ↑ Recalcitrant Sculptress, Fallen London
  2. ↑ Enlist expert assistance, Fallen London "A few notes smuggled from your library to the Palace cellars, written over candlelight in indecipherable code. She'll have cracked it by elevenses."
  3. ↑ The Gift, Fallen London "[...] a gaunt thing shivers in a coat of glass feathers. [...]"
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Reveal an artistic truth to the Smiling Jester, Fallen London "[...] Her talons are long, and red-spotted. And, moving closer, you spot the stubble of vestigial feathers, emerging through the ruff."
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Reveal an artistic truth to the Smiling Jester, Fallen London "The reveler's costume is exquisite: an Elizabethan gown of glass feathers, complete with a razor-sharp ruff. Servants surround her, tweaking individual shards with long tongs, at which the reveler lets out an occasional amiable squawk."
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Reveal an artistic truth to the Smiling Jester, Fallen London "[...] The Sculptress would be pleased to embark upon a correspondence with you. The servant winces as the Sculptress lets out a hollow chime as punctuation to his invitation."
  7. ↑ The Gift, Fallen London "Before each step, you nudge the feathers aside with your toe. [...] There are shapes in the dark: statues. The Recalcitrant Sculptress was gifted when she still had hands. Now, her works are crude; as twisted as dying oaks. This one has a set of stubby, vestigial arms protruding from the sides of its head. Another, further in, has a narrow torso covered in mouths. You pass between the monstrous statues as swiftly as you dare."
  8. ↑ Misplaced Ring, Fallen London "On the inside there are two inscriptions. The first reads 'To L., from your Dear Mother.' The other, in the Correspondence, reads 'AN ALTERATION MADE TO THE WORLD WHICH IS MIRRORED IN THE SELF.'"
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