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D2006-CMD-1698
Miniature Portrait of a Man, possibly John Page (1743-1808)
D2006-CMD-1698

Miniature Portrait of a Man, possibly John Page (1743-1808)

Date1780-1790
Possibly by 1741 - 1827
OriginAmerica
MediumWatercolor on ivory in a copper case
DimensionsFramed (Including copper case): 1 1/2 x 1 1/8in. (3.8 x 2.9cm)
Other (Leather-Covered Storage Box, Closed): 15/16 x 2 5/8 x 2 1/8in. (2.4 x 6.7cm)
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1930-584,1
DescriptionA bust-length portrait of a young, brown-eyed man turned 3/4 to the viewer's right. His dark brown hair is pulled back at the top, tied in a ribbon in the back, and curled at the sides. He wears a dark blue coat over a red waistcoat with a white ruffled shirt and white neck cloth. The format is very tight to the figure, and the oval support is framed in a copper case. The box acquired with the miniature is numbered 1930-584,2 and is of tortoiseshell and gilt brass.Inscription(s)The lid of the leather-covered box for this miniature is lettered in black paint in a combination of upright script with some block printing: "Governor/John Page/by/Chas W Peale".
Laid loosely inside the leather-covered storage box accompanying this miniature is a small (1/2" x 1 1/2") slip of laid paper on which the word "Batie" is written in 18th- or early 19th-century-style script in black ink. The meaning of the word is unknown, but the interpretation of the lettering seems clear.ProvenanceAcquired from Ruel Pardee Tolman who sold it from the estate of Thomas Jefferson Page, grandson of Governor Page.