The young girl has traditionally been identified as Mary Bower, with the dates 1755—1758. However, no information has come to light on this individual, while a Mary Bower who died in 1783 has been identified. The portrait may be a posthumous one, a fact born out by the association of mourning rings and lockets with miniatures. In addition, she clutches a rattle of gold bells with a coral handle; coral
was a common symbol of warding off the evil eye, especially for children. To add to the confusion, the style of the miniature is later than the eighteenth century and possibly even as late as 1825.
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