Ship's Figurehead: Bust of a Girl

Dateca. 1825

OriginAmerica, Mid-Atlantic or New England (probably)

MediumPainted white pine

DimensionsOverall: 27 1/2 x 20 x 15in. (69.9 x 50.8 x 38.1cm)

Credit LineGift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller

Object number1931.704.1

DescriptionA carved and white-painted wooden half-length depiction of a young girl wearing a long-sleeved, empire-waisted dress, the waistline defined by loose S-scrolls that comes to a small point at center front. Narrow bands appear near the tops of the sleeves, just below the shoulders. Her body leans forward. Both arms are bent at the elbows, but her forearms and hands were missing at the time of acquisition, and it is uncertain how these limbs were originally configured. (Hands clasped in the front?) The girl's shoulder-length hair is parted in the middle and incised to suggest strands. The high relief carving around her neck appears to represent neckline trim on her dress (rather than a necklace). The arms are carved free. The back of the wooden block is flat, though at some point, a narrow, rectangular, non-original recess was chiseled out to accommodate the iron hanging bracket now screwed to the figure. Artist unidentified.
Label TextThe representation of a young girl is said to have come off a schooner that sailed on Long Island Sound, but the story is unverified. Some construction features are atypical of figureheads, such as the unmortised bottom, but the forward-leaning posture is characteristic of most surviving examples. Possibly the carving originally served as a figurehead but was shortened at some early point in its life.
The present height is not unusual, however; bust- and half-length figureheads were created as well as full-length ones. Most figureheads were polychromed (painted in multiple colors), but overall coatings of white were also popular, perhaps being meant to simulate marble. In this case, the solid coloration, which appears to be original, gives the figure a particular air of serenity and detachment. A ca. 1825 date derives primarily from the combination of hairstyle and costume details.

ProvenanceFound near Bridgeport, Conn., and acquired by Edith Gregor Halpert, Downtown Gallery, New York, NY; sold by Halpert to Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr., 3 July 1931, by whom given to CWF in 1939.

Exhibition(s)