Sarah Biffen also known as Biffin or Beffin, was a Victorian

Victorian era

The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

 English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 painter born with no arms. She was 94 cms (37 inches) tall.

Life and work

Sarah Biffen was born October 1784 to a family of farmers in East Quantoxhead

East Quantoxhead

East Quantoxhead is a village in West Somerset, from West Quantoxhead, east of Williton, and west of Bridgwater, within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset, England.-History:...

, Somerset

Somerset

The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...

, with no arms and only vestigial legs. Despite her handicap, Biffen learned to read, and later was able to write using her mouth. She could also do needlework

Needlework

Needlework is a broad term for the handicrafts of decorative sewing and textile arts. Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework...

 and use scissors.

When Biffen was twelve, her family apprenticed her to a man named Mr. Dukes, who exhibited her in fair

Fair

A fair or fayre is a gathering of people to display or trade produce or other goods, to parade or display animals and often to enjoy associated carnival or funfair entertainment. It is normally of the essence of a fair that it is temporary; some last only an afternoon while others may ten weeks. ...

s and sideshow

Sideshow

In America, a sideshow is an extra, secondary production associated with a circus, carnival, fair or other such attraction.- Types of attractions :There are four main types of classic sideshow attractions:...

s throughout England. According to some accounts, it was Dukes who taught her to paint, holding the paint-brush in her mouth, in order to increase her value as an attraction. In any case, during this period, she held exhibitions, sold her paintings and autographs, and took admission fees to let others see her sew, paint and draw. She drew landscapes or painted portrait miniatures on ivory

Ivory

Ivory is a term for dentine, which constitutes the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals, when used as a material for art or manufacturing. Ivory has been important since ancient times for making a range of items, from ivory carvings to false teeth, fans, dominoes, joint tubes, piano keys and...

, which she sold for three guineas each. Contemporaries praised her skill, and some of her miniatures survive to this day. Dukes apparently promised to give a 1000 guineas if his protégée did not live up to his billing! However, Biffen may have received as little as £5 per annum while she was with Dukes.

In the St. Bartholomew's Fair

Bartholomew Fair

Bartholomew Fayre: A Comedy is a comedy in five acts by Ben Jonson, the last written of his four great comedies. It was first staged on October 31, 1614 at the Hope Theatre by the Lady Elizabeth's Men...

 of 1808, the Earl of Morton

George Douglas, 16th Earl of Morton

George Douglas, 16th Earl of Morton, KT was the son of Sholto Douglas, 15th Earl of Morton.He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in February, 1785 and served as their vice-president from 1795-1819...

 wanted to see if Biffen could really paint unaided. Once he was convinced, he sponsored her to receive lessons from a Royal Academy

Royal Academy

The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...

 painter, William Craig

William Marshall Craig

William Marshall Craig exhibited at times at the Royal Academy, from 1788 until 1827. He first lived at Manchester, but settled in London about 1791. He was painter in water-colours to the Queen, and miniature painter to the Duke and Duchess of York...

. The Society of Artists

Society of Artists

The Society of Artists of Great Britain was founded in London in May 1761 by an association of artists in order to provide a venue for the public exhibition of recent work by living artists, such as was having success in the long-established Paris salons....

 awarded her a medal in 1821 and the Royal Academy accepted her paintings. The Royal Family

British Royal Family

The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...

 commissioned her to paint miniature portraits of them, as a result of which she became very popular. She set up a studio in Bond Street

Bond Street

Bond Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London that runs north-south through Mayfair between Oxford Street and Piccadilly. It has been a fashionable shopping street since the 18th century and is currently the home of many high price fashion shops...

, London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens

Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...

 mentioned her in Nicholas Nickleby, Martin Chuzzlewit

Martin Chuzzlewit

The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit is a novel by Charles Dickens, considered the last of his picaresque novels. It was originally serialized between 1843-1844. Dickens himself proclaimed Martin Chuzzlewit to be his best work, but it was one of his least popular novels...

, and Little Dorrit

Little Dorrit

Little Dorrit is a serial novel by Charles Dickens published originally between 1855 and 1857. It is a work of satire on the shortcomings of the government and society of the period....

.

The Earl of Morton died in 1827. Without the support of a noble sponsor, Biffen ran into financial trouble when her manager used most of her money. Queen Victoria

Victoria of the United Kingdom

Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....

 awarded her a Civil List pension

Pension

In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...

 and she retired to a private life in Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

. Some years later she married and 12 years later tried to renew her success with the name Mrs. Wright. The attempt was not successful but her supporters, including Richard Rathbone

Richard Rathbone

Richard Rathbone was a member of the noted Rathbone family of Liverpool in England. He was the second son of William Rathbone IV. Richard was a commission merchant, setting up in partnership with his brother, William Rathbone V in 1809.He retired in 1835...

, arranged a public subscription to finance her for her final years.

Sarah Biffen died October 2, 1850 at the age of 66. She is buried in St James Cemetery

St James Cemetery

St James's Cemetery is an urban park behind the Liverpool Cathedral that is below ground level. Until 1825, the space was a stone quarry, and until 1936 it was used as the Liverpool city cemetery. It has been designated a Grade I Historic Park by English Heritage.-History:The workings and...

 in Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

.

See also

• John Carter (mouth artist)
  John Carter (mouth artist)
  John Carter was an English silk weaver and artist, who, after an accident left him paralysed from below the neck, learnt to draw, paint and write by holding the pencil, pen or brush in his mouth...
  
   (1815-1850), who was paralysed from below the neck after a fall.
• Bartram Hiles (1872-1927), a mouth artist who lost both arms in an accident.

External links

• Sarah Biffin - self portrait (National Galleries of Scotland)
• Sarah Biffin – The Limbless Artisan ("The Human Marvels")
• Sarah Biffen (Checkmate Books)
• The amazing Sarah Biffen - artiste extraordinary ("Number One LOndon" - blog)