Portrait of a Lady

Unidentified, Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1780, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1979.153.2
Unidentified, Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1780, watercolor on ivory, 1 1⁄8 x 1 1⁄4 in. (2.9 x 3.2 cm) half oval, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1979.153.2
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Artwork Details

Title
Portrait of a Lady
Artist
Unidentified
Date
ca. 1780
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
1 1⁄8 x 1 1⁄4 in. (2.9 x 3.2 cm) half oval
Credit Line
Museum purchase
Mediums
Mediums Description
watercolor on ivory
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait female — unidentified — head
Object Number
1979.153.2
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1979.153.2

Artwork Description

Set in a locket, this mourning miniature holds the memory of a woman’s beauty and elegance. Feathers and a string of navy beads accent her hair, which is styled in the manner of late-eighteenth-century British aristocrats. The portrait’s somber mood conveys the family’s grief after the loss of a loved one.

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