A group of six American silhouettes and miniature portraits, first half 19th century

Most with attribution and inscriptions noted on backboards; four with hand-painted details including a gentleman by William Bache (1771-1845), bearing impressed stamp; a bust of a gentleman, attributed to William Chamberlain (1790-1860), circa 1810; a young woman with a bonnet by Rufus Porter (1792-1884); a woman identified as Mrs. Abner Woodruff with elaborated bonnet, by Francis de Janvier (1817-1885), signed “F.D. Janvier, Pinxt”; a seated young man in a grain-painted chair; and a standing gentleman painted by Auguste Edouart (1789-1861), 1845.

H: 10 ¾ in. W: 7 ¼ in. (largest, Edouart, sight)

Provenance

Collection of L. Delmar and Susan Burrows Swan, Wilmington, Delaware.
Susan B. Swan was a needlework scholar and author. She served for many years as a curator at Winterthur Museum.

lot 76: all appear to be secured in frames, unexamined out of frames; Edouart: visible spots of foxing, a couple tears to upper center edge, and some abrasions and tear along lower edge, some minor water staining to center; Bache: mostly clean, a few minor specks of pigment or foxing; lady in blue: mild toning, frame is period with some minor loss to gilding, eglomise has small loss to upper left corner; Abner Woodruff: a couple creases from former folding, some general toning and spots of foxing; man with whip: toning to background, frame is period; portrait of man: a few visible tears, including one stitched together (upper left corner), spotting, and mild toning