Fanny Cornforth

Fanny Cornforth (actually Sarah Cox; * 1835 in Steyning, Sussex, † 1906 in London) was model and muse of the Pre-Raphaelites.

Life

In 1858 the London maid Fanny Cornforth met the painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti. He took her as a model and lover. Later she entered a relationship with William Holman Hunt and George Price Boyce.

1860 left Rossetti married Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal and they. After his wife had died of an overdose of laudanum, Rossetti moved to Chelsea in October 1862 and renewed the relationship with Fanny. She sat him model, kept house for him and became his mistress. He painted much more sensual than Lizzie Siddal, and the pictures sold well. 1870 Rossetti separated again by Fanny and went into an affair with Jane Burden. As this 1876 discovered the extent of chloral addiction of Rossetti, she broke off the relationship with him. He resumed contact with Fanny, who nursed him back to health.

In December 1881 the ever- ailing artist suffered a stroke, who moved paralysis of the left arm and left leg after, and Rossetti ended his long relationship with Fanny Cornforth. Little is known about their later life.

Rossetti: The Holy Grail, 1860

Rossetti: The Fair Rosamund, 1861

Fanny Comforth - Photography by W. & D. Downey, Newcastle 1863

Others

• In the course of the relationship Cornforth put on weight, and Rossetti gave her the pet name my dear Elephant, she called him Rhino.
• Fanny Cornforth was married twice. In his first marriage (1858 ) with the mechanical engineer Timothy Hughes, they separated quickly. In 1879, she married John Schott.