A pencil still life drawing of a leather handbag — the most unexpected subject in the entire collection, and the second still life after the Squash and Vessels (868). Where the squash still life is a warm watercolor still life in the classical tradition, this is an object study in pencil — a specific handbag drawn with patient observation of its form, its leather grain, its hardware detail.
The bag is a structured leather satchel or tote — a large rounded lower body, a flap top, a wide strap. It is drawn from slightly above and to the right, so the depth of the bag is visible. The bag's surface is described with light parallel marks suggesting the leather's texture without rendering individual grain marks. At the center of the front flap, a small clasp or lock is described with particular precision — a small oval with an interior detail, the most jewel-like element of the drawing.
The overall form of the bag fills the horizontal composition generously — it is a large bag, and Sidney drew it at something close to life size on a large sheet of paper. The tonal buildup in the shadow zones under the flap and around the strap attachment points gives the bag genuine three-dimensionality.
Why Sidney drew a handbag is unknown — it may have been a commission study, a drawing for a specific person, or simply an object that was present and demanded to be drawn. Whatever the reason, he brought the same patient observation to this object that he brought to pebbles, plants, and faces.