3-016-182 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Sheba, c.1929. This is a portrait of Allison Kirkcaldie, who was part of the family that owned Wellington’s Kirkcaldie and Stains department store. She is painted in fancy dress, as the Queen of Sheba. In 1928, Allison Kirkcaldie was one of six young Wellington women chosen to participate in the Dream of Fair Women Pageant. The pageant was held in the Town Hall, with each participant dressed as a different queen. It was part of a fundraising carnival to raise money for the establishment of a National Art Gallery.