Catherine Maria ('Kitty') Fisher (died 1767) was one of the most famous English courtesans of her day. 1767 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The English are an ethnic group originating in the lowlands of Great Britain and are descendent primarily from the Anglo-Saxons, the Celts with minor influences from the Scandanavians and other groups. ... A courtesan is a person paid and/or supported for the giving of social companionship and intimate liaisons to one or more partners. ...

Known for her beauty, wit and horse-riding skills, she was a favourite model of Sir Joshua Reynolds and an aspiring actress. Many see natural beauty in the folded petals of a rose. ... Sir Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (July 16, 1723–February 23, 1792) was the most important and influential of eighteenth-century English painters, specialising in portraits and promoting the Grand Style in painting which depended on idealization of the imperfect. ...

When he visited London in the 1760s, Casanova met "... the illustrious Kitty Fisher, who was just beginning to be fashionable". He wrote in his memoirs: Events and Trends King George III ascends the British throne in 1760. ... Giacomo Casanova (April 5, 1725 - June 4, 1798). ...

"She was magnificently dressed, and it is no exaggeration to say that she had on diamonds worth five hundred thousand francs. Goudar told me that if I liked I might have her then and there for ten guineas. I did not care to do so, however, for, though charming, she could only speak English, and I liked to have all my senses, including that of hearing, gratified. When she had gone, Mrs. Wells told us that Kitty had eaten a bank-note for a thousand guineas, on a slice of bread and butter, that very day. The note was a present from Sir Akins, brother of the fair Mrs. Pitt. I do not know whether the bank thanked Kitty for the present she had made it." (In London And Moscow: The English by Jacques Casanova de Seingalt).

Nathaniel Hone painted her in 1765, at the height of her popularity. His famous painting, now in the National Portrait Gallery, London, shows her with a kitten ('kitty'), which is trying to get at a goldfish in a bowl ('fisher'). Reflected in the bowl are the faces of a crowd of people, looking through a window. Nathaniel Hone (24 April 1718-14 August 1784) was an Irish-born portrait and miniature painter, and one of the founder members of the Royal Academy in 1768. ... 1765 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... At least three art galleries are named National Portrait Gallery: National Portrait Gallery, Australia National Portrait Gallery, London National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Part of the London skyline viewed from the South Bank London is the most populous city in the European Union, with an estimated population on 1 January 2005 of 7,500,000 and a metropolitan area population of between 12 and 14 million. ... A kitten. ... Trinomial name Carassius auratus auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) The Goldfish (Carassius auratus auratus) was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is still one of the most commonly-kept aquarium fish. ...

Kitty maintained a famous rivalry with Maria Gunning, who became Lady Coventry. Giustiniana Wynne, visiting London at the time, wrote: Maria Gunning (1733 - September 30, 1760) was a famous London beauty and society hostess during the reign of King George II. She was born at St Ives in Cambridgeshire of Irish parentage, the sister of Elizabeth Gunning. ...

"The other day they ran into each other in the park and Lady Coventry asked Kitty the name of the dressmaker who had made her dress. [Kitty Fisher] answered she had better ask Lord Coventry as he had given her the dress as a gift."

Giustiniana also wrote that "She lives in the greatest possible splendor, spends twelve thousand pounds a year, and she is the first of her social class to employ liveried servants - she even has liveried chaise porters." (Quoted in A Venetian Affair by Andrea di Robilant) A livery is a uniform worn by a civilian person. ... Andrea di Robilant is the author of A Venetian Affair, a 2003 novel set in 18th century Venice. ...

Besides sitting for Sir Joshua Reynolds (multiple times) and Nathaniel Hone, she was painted by Philip Mercier and James Northcote, among others. Apart from the letters of Giustiniana Wynne, she is mentioned in the diaries and letters of people as varied as Madame D'Arblay and Horace Walpole. James Northcote (October 22, 1746 - July 13, 1831), was an English painter. ... Fanny Burney later Madame DArblay (June 13, 1752-January 6, 1840) was an English novelist and diarist. ... Horatio Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford, more commonly known as Horace Walpole, (September 24, 1717 – March 2, 1797), was a politician, writer and forerunner of the Gothic revival. ...

In 1766, she married Mr. Norris, son of the M.P. for Rye. 1766 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

She died from the effects of lead-based cosmetics in 1767. General Name, Symbol, Number lead, Pb, 82 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 14, 6, p Appearance bluish white Atomic mass 207. ...

She is immortalised in the nursery rhyme, Lucy Locket. A nursery rhyme is a traditional song or poem taught to young children, originally in the nursery. ... Lucy Locket is an English nursery rhyme. ...

External links

• Portraits of Kitty Fisher in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
• In London And Moscow: The English by Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, Gutenburg Project.