Maria Rex Zimmermanc. 1828Sheet: 17 x 10 1/2 " (43.2 x 26.7 cm)
Frame: 24 1/2 x 30 1/4 x 1 1/4 " (62.2 x 76.8 x 3.2 cm)Watercolor, gouache, ink, pencil on paperGift of Ralph Esmerian2013.1.501547994042P1.2001.14BP1.2001.14AJacob MaentelDrawingsThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain.SchaefferstownSchaefferstownUnited StatesPennsylvaniaWorks on PapereMuseum - Collection HighlightsSchaefferstownWhen Jacob Maentel started painting frontal portraits, he introduced a formula of colorful and elaborately appointed interiors that included furnishings such as these painted slat-back Windsor side chairs with bamboo turnings, expensive high-style looking glasses, and embellished wall and floor coverings. He frequently portrayed married couples on separate sheets of paper that formed a continuous and almost symmetrical scene when placed side by side.
Maria Rex Zimmerman (1804–1887) was descended on her mother's side from Alexander Schaeffer, the founder of Schaefferstown. Her father, Abraham, and his brother Samuel were Schaefferstown storekeepers. Extant record books show Maentel was a patron of the store between at least 1825 and 1830; he had further transactions with Samuel Rex in 1832 and 1833. Thus Maentel was probably personally familiar with Maria and her family when he painted these portraits.
The house was built in 1758 and operated as a tavern until 1806, at which time Samuel Rex took up residence. After he died, the house was passed to Abraham, who in turn gave it to Maria. She and her husband Peter lived the remainder of their lives in the "Rex House," as it is presently known, and which is owned by Historic Schaefferstown, Inc. Interestingly, based upon contemporary examinations of sections of walls in the house, the patterns depicted in Maentel's rendering are most probably painted decorations, and not wallpaper.
It is not known when the Zimmermans married, but their first child was baptized in 1827, just about the time these portraits were painted. An interesting link exists between the Zimmermans and another prominent Schaefferstown family portrayed by Maentel, establishing that on occasion his clients were well known to one another. The couple's daughter Susan Amanda married Alfred Bucher, son of Dr. Christian and Mary Bucher. Like his father, Alfred was a physician, continuing a long-established family tradition of pursuing the medical profession.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Maria Rex Zimmerman," in American Radiance: The Ralph Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 382.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org
Jacob Maentel was a German immigrant who served in the Pennsylvania Militia and was naturalized in York County soon after his discharge in 1815. Between 1807 and 1846, Maentel painted more than two hundred watercolor portraits of neighbors in southeastern Pennsylvania and Harmony, Indiana. The portraits of Maria Rex (1804–1887) and Peter Zimmerman (1802–1887) epitomize the formula that Maentel developed in the late 1820s and 1830s of depicting married couples on separate sheets of paper standing within colorful and elaborately appointed interiors.
Maria, known as Mary or Polly to her family and friends, was descended from the founder of Schaefferstown. Her father, Abraham, and his brother, Samuel, were Schaefferstown storekeepers. Abraham’s surviving ledger books show that Maentel was a patron of the store for purchases of paints, brushes, and paper between at least 1825 and 1830. In addition, the artist attended the same church as the Zimmermans. When Abraham inherited the family home from Samuel after he died in 1835, he passed it to his daughter for a nominal sum. She and Peter moved into the house in the latter part of that year, having also purchased a looking glass, table, and two chairs when Samuel’s estate was sold at public auction. There is evidence of stenciling on the kitchen walls of the house, which is now part of Historic Schaefferstown, but it is nowhere as elaborate as the papered or stenciled patterns that appear in these portraits.
It is not certain whether these portraits were painted in 1835, when Mary solely acquired ownership of the home, or closer to the date of their marriage in 1827, when they were living in nearby Jackson Township. Peter’s business as a cattle dealer frequently took him out west, leaving Mary on her own for long periods of time to contend with five children, and to manage the household and business affairs. She seems to have been equal to the task, also owning bank stock in her own name as well as several Schaefferstown properties that she leased to tenants.
My gratitude to Diane Wenger for providing images and biographical information about Maria Rex and Peter Zimmerman.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Maria Rex Zimmerman and Peter Zimmerman," exhibition copy for American Perspectives: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2020. P1.2001.14BP1.2001.14A18231833 2013 1 5 When Jacob Maentel started painting frontal portraits, he introduced a formula of colorful and elaborately appointed interiors that included furnishings such as these painted slat-back Windsor side chairs with bamboo turnings, expensive high-style looking glasses, and embellished wall and floor coverings. He frequently portrayed married couples on separate sheets of paper that formed a continuous and almost symmetrical scene when placed side by side.
Maria Rex Zimmerman (1804–1887) was descended on her mother's side from Alexander Schaeffer, the founder of Schaefferstown. Her father, Abraham, and his brother Samuel were Schaefferstown storekeepers. Extant record books show Maentel was a patron of the store between at least 1825 and 1830; he had further transactions with Samuel Rex in 1832 and 1833. Thus Maentel was probably personally familiar with Maria and her family when he painted these portraits.
The house was built in 1758 and operated as a tavern until 1806, at which time Samuel Rex took up residence. After he died, the house was passed to Abraham, who in turn gave it to Maria. She and her husband Peter lived the remainder of their lives in the "Rex House," as it is presently known, and which is owned by Historic Schaefferstown, Inc. Interestingly, based upon contemporary examinations of sections of walls in the house, the patterns depicted in Maentel's rendering are most probably painted decorations, and not wallpaper.
It is not known when the Zimmermans married, but their first child was baptized in 1827, just about the time these portraits were painted. An interesting link exists between the Zimmermans and another prominent Schaefferstown family portrayed by Maentel, establishing that on occasion his clients were well known to one another. The couple's daughter Susan Amanda married Alfred Bucher, son of Dr. Christian and Mary Bucher. Like his father, Alfred was a physician, continuing a long-established family tradition of pursuing the medical profession.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Maria Rex Zimmerman," in American Radiance: The Ralph Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 382.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org
Jacob Maentel was a German immigrant who served in the Pennsylvania Militia and was naturalized in York County soon after his discharge in 1815. Between 1807 and 1846, Maentel painted more than two hundred watercolor portraits of neighbors in southeastern Pennsylvania and Harmony, Indiana. The portraits of Maria Rex (1804–1887) and Peter Zimmerman (1802–1887) epitomize the formula that Maentel developed in the late 1820s and 1830s of depicting married couples on separate sheets of paper standing within colorful and elaborately appointed interiors.
Maria, known as Mary or Polly to her family and friends, was descended from the founder of Schaefferstown. Her father, Abraham, and his brother, Samuel, were Schaefferstown storekeepers. Abraham’s surviving ledger books show that Maentel was a patron of the store for purchases of paints, brushes, and paper between at least 1825 and 1830. In addition, the artist attended the same church as the Zimmermans. When Abraham inherited the family home from Samuel after he died in 1835, he passed it to his daughter for a nominal sum. She and Peter moved into the house in the latter part of that year, having also purchased a looking glass, table, and two chairs when Samuel’s estate was sold at public auction. There is evidence of stenciling on the kitchen walls of the house, which is now part of Historic Schaefferstown, but it is nowhere as elaborate as the papered or stenciled patterns that appear in these portraits.
It is not certain whether these portraits were painted in 1835, when Mary solely acquired ownership of the home, or closer to the date of their marriage in 1827, when they were living in nearby Jackson Township. Peter’s business as a cattle dealer frequently took him out west, leaving Mary on her own for long periods of time to contend with five children, and to manage the household and business affairs. She seems to have been equal to the task, also owning bank stock in her own name as well as several Schaefferstown properties that she leased to tenants.
My gratitude to Diane Wenger for providing images and biographical information about Maria Rex and Peter Zimmerman.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Maria Rex Zimmerman and Peter Zimmerman," exhibition copy for American Perspectives: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2020.