Man in Black Jacket

Dateca. 1820

MediumWatercolor and pencil on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Support: 3 7/8 x 3 1/8in. (9.8 x 7.9cm) and Framed: 4 7/8 x 4 1/8in.

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1963.300.2

DescriptionA bust-length profile portrait of a young man facing left. The button, lapels, and folds of his black jacket are emphasized with gum arabic. His high white collar is tied in front with a stock; on his frilled shirt front appears a small brooch showing a bust-length figure in profile. The edge of his waistcoat projects beyond his coat collar and the fabric is white decorated with squiggly parallel gray lines. His eye is dark, his hair dark brown and swept forward around his face.
Original 3/4-inch oval wood frame with an embossed brass face and brass hanging ring at center top.
Label TextAn interesting detail of this simple bust-length profile is the minuscule second profile of a man that appears on the stickpin worn by the unidentified but dapper subject.
InscribedSee "Marks."
MarkingsPrinted in ink on a small rectangular scrap of what is probably a twentieth-century paper label affixed to the frame's wood backing is "GOLDSMITH". Printed in pencil in the same hand on the inside of the frame's wood backing is "GOLDSMITH". The primary support bears no watermark or other inscriptions.
ProvenanceMary Allis, Fairfield, Conn.