Figurine of Florence Nightingale and a wounded officer, England, 1850-1870

Pottery figure group depicting Florence Nightingale standing next to a wounded officer, Staffordshire, mid 19th century

A large number of statues were made of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) throughout her career as she was an extremely popular public figure. Mass-produced statues like this one would have been found in many middle class Victorian living rooms.

During the Crimean War (1853-1856), more soldiers were dying of water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhus than from battle-inflicted wounds. Nightingale was often called the ‘Angel of the Crimea’ for reforming the hospital at Scutari, Turkey, and reducing the death rate. Recent research has shown that the death rate actually rose during the beginning of Nightingale’s visit and only fell when a British government commission improved ventilation and sewers.