Mourning Miniature for E. W.

Unidentified, Mourning Miniature for E. W., ca. 1800, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Rene Muller, 1980.95.3
Copied Unidentified, Mourning Miniature for E. W., ca. 1800, watercolor on ivory, sight 2 1⁄8 x 1 3⁄4 in. (5.4 x 4.3 cm) oval, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Rene Muller, 1980.95.3
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Mourning Miniature for E. W.
Artist
Unidentified
Date
ca. 1800
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sight 2 1⁄8 x 1 3⁄4 in. (5.4 x 4.3 cm) oval
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Rene Muller
Mediums
Mediums Description
watercolor on ivory
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — sheep
  • Landscape — water
  • State of being — emotion — sorrow
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — house
  • Figure female — full length
Object Number
1980.95.3
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1980.95.3

Artwork Description

Miniature paintings memorializing a friend or family member grew popular in the nineteenth century when the death of Prince Albert sent Queen Victoria into deep mourning. A name and death date on a locket, pin, or ring marked the passing of a loved one, and artists sometimes mixed a lock of the deceased person’s hair in with the pigment. The paintings often showed the bereaved person next to a tomb or cinerary urn, as in Mourning Locket for A. R. and Mourning Ring, and sometimes included symbols of grieving such as a dove or weeping willow.