Catalog: Fine Art: Paintings: Miniatures (328)

A striking and colorful R. Mills miniature portrait of a blue-eyed blonde woman. The subject is wearing a white gown with lace edging and balloon sleeves, a blue necklace and sash belt. Those colors nicely complement the carefully chosen background, which is blue with pink tinges, which also complements her ruddy or over-rouged cheeks.

The painting is signed on the backing paper "Painted by Rd Mills Birmingham 1829" and is housed in a 4 1/4" by 3 5/8" bronze frame...

A fine portrait miniature painted by William Lewis. The sitter is an attractive gentleman in a black coat, white vest, stock, and shirt, the latter highlighted with a stick pin containing three rubies. It should be noted that the technique and facial structure of this painting is at a higher level than Lewis' works display (see Note 2 below).

Excellent condition with no issues. Sight size is 2 3/8" by 1 7/8", and the later frame is 2 5/8" by 2 1/4".

BIOPGRAPHICAL NOTES: 1...

A striking American rendering of a handsome gentleman, nattily attired in a black jacket and tie, and with a patterned vibrant blue vest. In a 2 3/4" by 2 1/4" gilt metal cast foliate frame with a glazed aperture on the reverse.

A charming portrait miniature painted by John Carlin on organic material. The blue-eyed, brown-haired baby is dressed, in the custom of the time, in a white gown and cap.

The portrait is in excellent condition, with no chips, cracks, bowing, or restoration. The gold case is also in fine condition. Sight size of this gem is 1 3/8" by 1 1/8".

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE: John Carlin (1813 - 1891) was born in Philadelphia...

A miniature portrait, done in watercolor and gouache on organic wafer, of a young man, well portrayed by the artist to capture his power and possible arrogance. The hazel-eyed sitter is shown in a casual pose, wearing a dark jacket and white ascot.

The condition is excellent, with no cracks, bowing, or paint loss. Presented in a cast bronze frame without glazing the sight size is 2 1/8" by 1 5/8", with an overall size of 4 1/2" by 3".

A well painted miniature portrait on natural organic material of a sea captain, identified on the reverse as "Phillip…MHK Captain". The miniature is in very good condition, with no cracks, chips, bowing, or restoration. The period lacquered frame is missing its cover glass, easy enough to replace. Sight size is 2 7/8" by 2 3/8", and the frame size is 5 1/8" by 4 3/8".

A finely executed watercolor on organic wafer bust-length depiction of an attractive sitter wearing a white gown, pearl earrings, and pearl brooch. Accompanied by an old typed and written note identifying the sitter and providing other information: "This beautiful miniature of my Grandmother, / Eliza Bowen Cadwalder, was given to me by my mother, who / treasured it. My Grandfather was George Cadwalder, / California pioneer who was an original Forty-niner and / mined gold in California...

A fine American miniature painting on natural wafer of a hazel-eyed woman, dressed in a white bonnet and fichu. Original locket gilt metal case has a plait of hair in the aperture on the back of the case.

Superb condition with no problems. The locket is 2 3/8" by 2", and the sight size of this little gem is 2 1/4" by 1 7/8".

A nicely done watercolor in natural material portrait of a young woman. Complementing the blue background, the sitter is presented with blue eye shadow and a blue ribbon and bow in her hair. The glazed reverse of the gold filled case is covered with a nice display of woven hair plaits.

Condition is excellent, with a case size of 1 7/8" by 1 5/8".

A nicely painted miniature portrait, on natural wafer, of a fashionably attired gentleman. The sitter is wearing a white shirt and stock, a black coat with velvet lapels, and a gray vest with black polka dots. Presented in a period, and possibly original, ebonized frame.

No cracks, chips, restoration or other condition issues. Sight size is 2 1/2" by 1 3/4", and the frame size is 4 3/8" by 3 3/8".

A nicely painted portrait of a fashionably dressed attractive young woman, done in watercolor on natural wafer. The painting and the ebonized wood frame are in fine condition. Sight size is 2 7/8" by 2 3/8", with a frame size of 5 1/4" by 4 1/2".

A finely painted portrait miniature, on natural wafer, of a bespectacled officer of the 7th Bengal Native Infantry of the Honourable East India Company. Done in vibrant colors and wonderful; detail, the work can be strongly attributed to Raja Jivan Ram. Works from this period in this style by Indian artists are quite uncommon and highly collected. More specifically, very few works by Ram are in private hands.

The painting here is in overall excellent condition, with no chips, cracks, or bowing...

An incredibly charming portrait miniature brooch of a young child, painted on natural material. The subject is beautiful, wearing a coral necklace and a pale lavender gown, and with brown eyes that were so finely and realistically painted with such depth that it is almost hard to believe when seeing this gem in person.

The condition is excellent, with no issues, and the overall size is 1 3/8" by 1".

A finely done miniature portrait painting on naturalk organic material, depicting an handsome gentleman wearing a black coat, white shirt and collar, with a stickpin.

The painting is in superb condition, with no problems or restoration. It is housed in its original case of cast foliate brass with the reverse having a glazed aperture. The case and glass are also in excellent condition, though the reverse has several unimportant dents.

A naïve but appealing watercolor and gouache painting on organic wafer of a young gentleman. The background is done with great effect in blues, brown, and pink.

The 2 1/4" by 1 3/4" painting is in fine condition, with no flaws to speak of. The case is structurally sound, with a glazed aperture on the rear, but could use a good overall cleaning.

A striking miniature portrait by Johann Christian Schoeller. The sitter is a girl child, dressed in purple, with a basket of flowers on her lap and posed in front of a window showing a landscape. Charming and colorful, this is an fine example of Schoeller's work. Presented in a period bronze frame, with an overall size of 3" by 2". The reverse has a label and a backing paper with the artist's name...

A miniature portrait of a handsome gentleman in a blue jacket with gold buttons. Presented in the original cast foliate case, the reverse having chessboard hairwork centered with "RD" initials in underlying gold topped with pearls.

Excellent condition with any apparent issues being due to my infamous photographic skills. The case size is 2 1/2" by 2".

A truly beautiful pair of miniature portraits, on natural wafer, exemplifying Hugh Bridport at his very best. Signed on the back of the boy,, in graphite, "Painted by Hugh Bridport, Phila".

The very handsome gentleman is wearing a black ascot, white collar, white shirt with onyx studs, and a black jacket. The young boy, with fine, light brown hair, is wearing a sky blue garment with white embroidery on the wide collar.

Both miniatures are in superb condition, with no cracks, chips, or bowing...

A well painted portrait miniature, on organic wafer, of a blue eyed gentleman wearing a deep blue coat, white ascot, shirt, and vest. Presented in a brass frame.

The condition is excellent, with no issues to speak of. The reddish area on the edge from 9:00 to 12:00 is due to light reflection. The painting appears much better in person than the photo shows. Framed size is 2 1/2" by 2".

A very nicely done naive watercolor of a gentleman, housed in its original embossed brass frame. The painting has had no restoration and has no tears or losses. sight size is 2 1/4" by 1 3/4", and the framed size is 3 3/4" by 3 1/8".

A well painted miniature portrait, executed in watercolors on organic material. The sitter is a nice looking blue-eyed young man wearing a black coat and blue patterned waistcoat. Presented in what appears to be the original heavy cast gilt bronze frame.

There are no condition issues with the painting, and the sight size is 4 1/2" by 3 1/2" with an overall size of 6" by 5 1/4".

A finely limned miniature of a woman wearing a lace edged black dress, a blue shawl, and gold earrings. In a 5" by 4 1/2" ebonized frame with a brass liner and a sight size of 2 1/8" by 1 3/4". Excellent condition.

A nicely painted American portrait miniature on organic wafer. The fine looking gentleman is nicely set off against a background of blue on the left side and a light brown on the right. Condition is excellent with no cracks, bowing, or paint loss. The case size is 2 1/8" by 1 5/8".

A well painted c1800 - 1812 miniature of a British officer. The sitter is wearing the uniform of a major general, with a red tunic, blue lapels and collar, and gold epaulettes and buttons. The miniature is signed lower left, with a somewhat indecipherable calligraphic monogram of "RM"?. Presented in a gilt metal frame with a bevelled blue glass back. Excellent condition, with an overall size of 2 1/2" by 2"

A wonderful portrait miniature, painted on organic wafer, by Andre Larue, known as Mansion. The sitter is a beautiful young woman wearing an off the shoulder dress with lace trim and bows and holding a black shawl as she leans against a red pillow on red sofa. Displayed in a later, but very nice, wood frame with a bronze liner.

The condition of this stunning piece is superb, with no cracks, paint loss, bowing, or restoration...

A nicely done miniature portrait, on natural organic material, of an attractive young woman. The sitter is wearing a white dress, a black necklace and earrings, and an upswept hairdo. The painting is housed in its blue velvet travel case, with a glass cover.

Condition is excellent, with no problems. The sight size is 2" by 1 1/2", and the closed case size is 3" by 2 1/2".

A watercolor portrait, on natural wafer, of a handsome gentleman attired in a black jacket and vest with a pale pink cravat. Housed in a very heavy and well-made brass case with the reverse side being fully glazed over fabric.

The condition of the painting and the case is excellent, with no flaws. The white dots and background color variations are just due to exterior dust and light reflections. Overall size is 2 7/8" by 2 3/8".

A finely limned miniature painting done in watercolor on natural material. The sitter is a hazel-eyed young man dressed in a black coat and tie. The condition of the painting is excellent, with no issues. The bluish area on the left side was painted in that fashion.

The bronze frame is also in fine shape, originally made to be worn as a pendant or as a brooch, but is missing the brooch pin on the reverse. Sight size is 2 1/4" by 1 7/8", and the overall size is 2 5/8" by 2 1/4".

A nicely done watercolor on organic material portrait miniature, depicting a half-length view of a young woman. In a black dress with a lace-edged neckline, she has accessorized with gold drop earrings and a triple strand gold necklace.

Of interest is the backing of the painting, which shows a portion of a finely drawn ink portrait of a man's head...

A charming and beautifully rendered watercolor portrait, of a very attractive young woman, painted by Emanuel Reynolds. The sitter is dressed in the height of fashion for the period, around 1837, with a spangled diaphanous blue shawl over a low cut, pleated, black dress highlighted with a central blue brooch...

A beautifully executed miniature done by Benjamin Trott in watercolor on organic wafer...

A charming and well limned naive miniature portrait painting on organic wafer. The sitter is a nice-looking young man attired in a black coat with brass buttons and the lapels with blue embellishment. Hi has a white shirt and stock, a high collar, and a yellowish gray vest. Housed in a cast foliate case with a rear glazed aperture containing cross-braided plaits of hair.

Condition is excellent, with no cracks, bowing, paint loss, etc. The case condition is also excellent. Sight size is 2 5/16...

A spectacular Nathaniel Rogers painting done in watercolor on organic wafer. I very rarely, if ever, describe or refer to an item as "the best", or the "finest example ever". However, there is no question that this painting represents Rogers at the peak of his ability, which indeed is quite high. Further, the vast majority of his paintings are only bust length, and do not depict the hands of the sitter, not any additional objects. Here we have the subject sitting with an arm draped over a chair,...

A totally charming miniature painting of a child, done in watercolor on natural material, and housed in an elaborately molded 15K gold case and surround. The cute sitter is in a white gown and posed against a cloud-filled blue sky, with foliage and a tree to the right. The reverse of the case is glazed, with a lock of hair in the aperture, and a pin so that the miniature can be worn as a brooch.

The condition of this lovely example is excellent. Sight size is 2 1/4" by 2 1/8" and the case size...

A miniature portrait painting by Abraham Parsell, done in his recognizable style with a multicolored background and the sitter having somewhat frizzy hair, posed with his arm on a chair. Housed in its original cast foliate frame with a glazed rear aperture. The original leather travel case comes with this piece, although it has separated at the hinge and held in place with a safety pin.

The painting is 2 3/4" by 2 1/4". Condition is excellent with no cracks, bowing, paint loss or restoration...

A superbly painted miniature portrait by the important American miniaturist Anson Dickinson, originally in a heavy wooden frame that was damaged, but now housed under glass in one half of a dag case. The reverse of the original frame has quite a bit of information on it, indicating that the sitter is Ambrose Dickinson, one of Anson's nine siblings. (It might be appropriate at this point to briefly pause in sympathy for Anson's mom, even though she was an underachiever compared to the wife of Th...