Handsome young gentleman in Military uniform, painted on ivory, set into a simple unmarked oval rose gold frame with fancy bail, with a convex glass, the verso convex plain rose gold. Initialed "CS" lower right in white to blue background. There are varnished details accenting some of the linear facets to the drawing. Approx. 2-3/4" x 2-3/8". The costume and hairstyle of the sitter can be dated to the 1800's.
Some portrait miniatures were used as tokens of political allegiance, and were exchanged by members of the aristocracy. This dashing young man may have been painted for this purpose, or to advertise his eligibility as a bachelor. "...the miniature, the little picture that could be covered by a kiss or hidden in the palm of the hand had an intimate and personal quality, it was a pledge of affection, often a gauge of stolen joys; it could be carried by the exiled in never so hurried a flight, could be concealed in the lid of a comfit case..." Scribner's Magazine, February 1897
1,500/2,500 Sold $1,035.00
back to catalog
