Alma-Tad'ema, SIR LAWRENCE, R.A., painter, was born, a notary's son, at Dronryp, in the Netherlands, 8th January 1836. Originally destined for the medical profession, it was not until 1852 that he devoted himself to the study of art. In that year he entered the Academy of Antwerp, and subsequently studied under Baron Henry Leys. Obtaining letters of naturalisation as a British subject, he settled permanently in England in 1873. Early in life he had deeply studied Egyptian archaeology and Greco-Roman art, and the results of his oriental investigations are strongly apparent in his works, which are distinguished for their careful composition, their accuracy of design, and the beauty, sobriety, and finish of their colouring. The following works may be cited as perhaps best embodying his aesthetic principles and the general characteristics of his art: 'Entrance to a Roman Theatre' (1866); 'Tarquinius Superbus' (1867); 'A Roman Amateur' (1868); 'Pyrrhic Dance' (1869); 'The Vintage' (1870); 'A Roman Emperor' (1871); 'The Mummy' (1872); 'A Picture Gallery' (1874); 'After the Dance' (1876); 'The Seasons' (1877); 'A Sculptor's Model'—Venus Esquilina (1879); 'The Way to the Temple'—the artist's diploma work for the Royal Academy (1883); 'The Emperor Hadrian visiting a British Pottery' (1884); 'An Apodyterium' (1886); and 'The Women of Amphissa' (1887). In 1876 Alma-
Tadema exhibited at the Grosvenor Gallery three pictures, 'Architecture,' 'Sculpture,' and 'Painting.' 'The Conversion of Paula by St Jerome' (1898) was a masterpiece, and some of his portraits are noteworthy. He holds Dutch, Belgian, and Bavarian orders, the German order Pour le Mérite, and is an officer of the Legion of Honour. Elected A.R.A. in 1876, he became R.A. in 1879, and was knighted in 1899. His second wife and one of his daughters are artists; another daughter has written novels and poems. See illustrated Life by F. G. Stephens (1895).