Who was the pig-faced lady of Manchester Square?

Rumours of a ‘pig-faced lady’ like the one depicted here swept Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. In this drawing she is eating out a silver trough and dressed in Regency-era clothing.

Whilst it looks anachronistic to us, this image of a woman dressed in finery with the head of a pig began to appear across The Netherlands, France and England in the late 1630s.

Where does the story come from?

The legend goes that a newly wed couple are approached by a witch, who grants the husband the choice of having his new wife appear beautiful to him but pig-like to others, or pig-like to him and beautiful to others.

When the husband tells the witch that the choice belongs to his wife, the enchantment is broken.

Another version of the story involves a pregnant noblewoman dismissing a beggarwoman and her children, calling them pigs. The beggar woman then curses the pregnant noblewoman, and when it comes time for her to give birth, out comes a pig faced baby girl.

Over time these origin stories disappeared from view, but rumours of pig-faced women would continue to circulate from time to time.

The most noticeable of these was Griselda Steevens, a philanthropist in the 18th century who was thought to have kept herself hidden from view because of her porcine appearance. In reality she had an eye disorder and was shy and reclusive.

Belief in pig-faced women was so strong that fairs even began ‘showing’ them as part of their exhibitions. These were in fact mostly shaved animals, like bears, dressed in women’s clothing.

But what about the pig-faced woman of Manchester Square?

In the early 19th century specific rumours of a pig-faced woman swept the capital. It was thought that the woman was the daughter of an unnamed noblewoman. People even claimed they had seen her leaving her house in a carriage, with a silhouetted pigs head glimpsed through the window.

Portraits of the supposed pig-faced woman began to circulate, and stories followed, supposedly from ‘a female who had attended on her’.

Whilst thousands of people believed ardently in the woman’s existence, The Times routinely dismissed and denounced her existence.

A would-be suitor even wrote to The Times, declaring he would marry the pig-faced lady of Manchester square. The Times refused to print the letter, but The Morning Herald and the Morning Chronicle did not.

This version of the pig-faced woman is depicted waltzing in a drawing by artist William Holland.

International pig-faced woman

The rumours continued, and 1814 to 1815 became full of pig-faced women rumours. The craze even spread to Paris, where a similar story did the rounds of society. This time an address was even included in the rumours.

However this version of the story was quickly revealed to be a hoax. A young man who had had his advances rebuffed made up the story in revenge. A tale as old as time, just with a few more porky details.