Skip to main content
Advanced Search
No image number on slide
Portrait of Rebecca Clarke Sinton (Mrs. William Sinton)(1794-1863)
No image number on slide

Portrait of Rebecca Clarke Sinton (Mrs. William Sinton)(1794-1863)

Date1835-1840
Attributed to Charles Burton (1782 - after 1847)
OriginAmerica, Virginia, Richmond
Mediumwatercolor and graphite on paper
DimensionsUnframed: 10 3/16 x 8 1/4in. (25.9 x 21cm) and Framed: 14 x 12in.
Credit LineGift of Louise Sinton Clay and Caryl Sinton Carlson in memory of their father, Admiral William Sinton, USN (Ret)
Object number2001.300.2
DescriptionA bust-length profile portrait of a woman facing right, shown within a fully furnished interior. Her dark dress has ruching on the sleeve and a broad, sheer white collar trimmed in lace; she wears a sheer white cap that has ruffles around the face and long ties that hang down in front. Her dark hair is parted in the middle and pulled back in a knot at the back of her head. She appears to be somewhat stocky, or chubby. She faces a window whose curtain is held back by a drapery tie-back. A patterned rug covers the floor and a drop-leaf table is set against the back wall.
Label TextIncluded among the numerous Richmond, Virginia, portrait subjects depicted by Charles Burton are at least a dozen members of Rebecca Clarke Sinton's extended family. The bust-length and profile format of this portrait are typical of the larger group, as is the significant amount of detail in the background.

The subject's parents, John and Hannah Watts Clarke, immigrated from Ireland and established their family in Richmond, Virginia, sometime before 1810, when their nephew William Sinton arrived there. William found his first cousin, Rebecca, to be a "lively funny girl with a good deal of humour," and the two of them were married on December 7, 1816. Shortly thereafter, both were disowned at the Friends Henrico Monthly Meeting for marrying "contrary to discipline."
InscribedThere are two modern labels on the reverse of the backboard. One, in the hand of a former owner, Mrs. William Sinton (Christine Lincoln) (1902-1988), states, "Rebecca Clarke Sinton/wife of William/B? D 1838". The other, in an unidentified hand, states " . . . [torn off] 5? D 1838/Rebecca Clarke Sinton/wife of William." In white chalk on the backboard is "8832" written over a "2".
ProvenanceFrom the subject to his grandson, Arthur C. Sinton (1854-1933); to his dauther, Mrs. Howard Sutton (Ellen Binford Sinton) (1884- 1968); to her brother, Admiral William Sinton (1896-1977); to his wife, Mrs. William Sinton (Christine Lincoln) (1902-1988); to her daughter, Mrs. Harry F. Carlson, Jr. (Caryl Sinton), who is AAFFAM's donor.