Trinket Box with Portraits1825–18354 1/2 × 8 × 5 1/8"Watercolor, pencil, and ink on paper under glass on wood box with brass hardwareMuseum purchase1981.12.17015222138Artist unidentifiedContainersThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain. http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596PortsmouthPortsmouthUnited StatesNew HampshireThree Dimensional WorksPortsmouthThere are at least two other published examples that are very similar to this box in format and decoration. The construction of the boxes is nearly identical with recessed panels that contain watercolor paintings covere with glass. The paintings bear a similarity to the watercolors of Ruby Devol Finch but the existence of multiple examples suggests a project fostered through published literature or seminary schools, rather than the product of a single hand.Throughout the nineteenth century, boxes served as receptacles for documents, linens, candles, knives, articles of clothing, jewelry, and other sundry items. Although small in scale, boxes reflected prevailing trends and often received the same attention to decoration as that seen in larger pieces of furniture. This box was possibly made by a young woman, either as part of a school exercise or perhaps in response to instructions available for the talented amateur. The use of a pattern—whether published or provided by a schoolmistress—is suggested by the existence of at least two additional boxes similar in both structural format and painted decoration; one of these also has a slot in the top so that the box might be used as a coin bank.
Applied strips of wood divide the exterior surface of each of these boxes into ten sections. Within each resulting compartment, a small watercolor portrait on paper is placed behind glass. The portraits, usually male and female figures, are contained in circular medallions, surrounded by flowers, or adorned in another fashion. In this example, the portraits may hold personal meaning, as the male and female portraits that are in separate compartments on the front and top of the box share the side in touching circles.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box with Portraits," American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 323. Decorative artspainted furnitureportraitThis distinctive box belongs to a small group recently identified by David A. Schorsch and Eileen M. Smiles as the work of schoolgirls under the tutelage of Emeline M. Robinson in her Portsmouth, New Hampshire, school, established in 1824. Each example features portraits drawn on paper in ink, painted in watercolor, applied to the top and sides of the box, and then protected under framed glass panels. This is one of two boxes in the group that features ten rather than eight such portraits.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box with Portraits," exhibition label for ALSO ON VIEW: Selections from the Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2014.http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster2459618251835 1981 12 17 There are at least two other published examples that are very similar to this box in format and decoration. The construction of the boxes is nearly identical with recessed panels that contain watercolor paintings covere with glass. The paintings bear a similarity to the watercolors of Ruby Devol Finch but the existence of multiple examples suggests a project fostered through published literature or seminary schools, rather than the product of a single hand.Throughout the nineteenth century, boxes served as receptacles for documents, linens, candles, knives, articles of clothing, jewelry, and other sundry items. Although small in scale, boxes reflected prevailing trends and often received the same attention to decoration as that seen in larger pieces of furniture. This box was possibly made by a young woman, either as part of a school exercise or perhaps in response to instructions available for the talented amateur. The use of a pattern—whether published or provided by a schoolmistress—is suggested by the existence of at least two additional boxes similar in both structural format and painted decoration; one of these also has a slot in the top so that the box might be used as a coin bank.
Applied strips of wood divide the exterior surface of each of these boxes into ten sections. Within each resulting compartment, a small watercolor portrait on paper is placed behind glass. The portraits, usually male and female figures, are contained in circular medallions, surrounded by flowers, or adorned in another fashion. In this example, the portraits may hold personal meaning, as the male and female portraits that are in separate compartments on the front and top of the box share the side in touching circles.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box with Portraits," American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 323. Decorative artspainted furnitureportraitThis distinctive box belongs to a small group recently identified by David A. Schorsch and Eileen M. Smiles as the work of schoolgirls under the tutelage of Emeline M. Robinson in her Portsmouth, New Hampshire, school, established in 1824. Each example features portraits drawn on paper in ink, painted in watercolor, applied to the top and sides of the box, and then protected under framed glass panels. This is one of two boxes in the group that features ten rather than eight such portraits.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box with Portraits," exhibition label for ALSO ON VIEW: Selections from the Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2014.