Louis Mathieu Didier Guillaume (District Of Columbia, 1816-1892), Pair of oil on canvas companion portraits depicting CSA Lt. Colonel Lewis Minor Coleman and his wife Mary Ambler Marshall Coleman. Lewis Coleman is depicted wearing a black suit and black tie and Mary A. Marshall Coleman is depicted wearing a black dress with a lace collar and cameo brooch. Signed lower right corner "L.M.D. Guillaume". Housed in gilt wood frames with oval openings. Female portrait: Sight - 27" H x 22 1/4" W. Framed - 37 1/2" H x 32" W. Provenance: The Estate of Charles Boyd Coleman, Jr., Chattanooga, TN, by descent from the subjects, Lewis Minor Coleman and his wife, Mary Ambler Marshall Coleman (daughter of James K. Marshall and granddaughter of U.S. Chief Justice John Marshall (1755-1835); their son, Lewis M. Coleman Jr. was related to the family of U.S. War Secretary Major General Henry Dearborn (1751-1829) by his marriage to Julia Wingate Boyd, daughter of Annette Maria Dearborn Boyd. Annette was the daughter of Greenleaf Dearborn (1786-1846) and his wife Pamela August Gilman (1802-1880) and was the great-granddaughter of Gen. Dearborn on her mother's side). Biography: "Coleman, Lewis Minor, born in Hanover County, Virginia, February 3, 1827; graduated with high honors at the University of Virginia, in 1846, and became principal of the Hanover Academy; in 1859, upon the resignation of Dr. Harrison from the chair of ancient languages in the University of Virginia, Mr. Coleman, who had been a pupil of Dr. Harrison, was elected professor of Latin, and relinquished his position in the Hanover Academy to accept the same; he served in that capacity but for two years, for in 1861, at the outbreak of the Civil War, he joined the ranks of the Confederate army, in which he enlisted as captain of an artillery company which he recruited; he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel of artillery in 1862; at the battle of Fredericksburg, December 13, 1862, he was severely wounded, and after three months died from his injury, March 21, 1863". (source: "The Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography:, Volume III, by Lyon Gardiner Tyler, LL. D., 1915). Artist biography: Living in Richmond, Virginia during the Civil War, Louis-Mathieu Guillaume was likely the best trained portraitist there at that time. His best known work is "Surrender of General Lee to General Grant, April 9, 1865," and it appears to have been based on photographs although he is said to have been present at the event. He also completed six equestrian portraits of Confederate leaders. He was born in Nantes, France and studied in Paris with Paul Delaroche and Pierre Lacour. In 1855, he came to the United States and spent several years in New York City and then in 1857 settled in Richmond, Virginia until 1871 when he moved to Washington DC. (Source: Askart). (Additional high-resolution photos are available at www.caseantiques.com.)

Female Portrait: extensive old repairs, including 4 tears with patches and inpainting. Significant bloom in varnish particularly to sitter's dress. Scattered brown accretions/splatter across canvas. Male portrait: Recently professionally cleaned with some areas of inpainting. Light vertical abrasions to paint surface running the entire visible length of the painting possibly due to past aggressive cleaning. Framed with later gilt paint.