A Rare Matthew Jouett Miniature Portrait c1810

The condition of the painting and the case is excellent, with no issues. Overall size is 2 7/8" by 2 3/8".

NOTES: 1. Although Jouett produced a large body of full portraits during his lifetime, signed or documented miniatures by Jouett are quite uncommon. However, the photo archives of the New York Art Resources Consortium show a miniature of a Mrs. Waller (photo 3 in the listing) as being done by Jouett. The sitter is clearly the same as the one offered here, and every aspect of the artist's techniques and composition is identical in the two pieces, thus making an extremely strong attribution possible.

2. Matthew Harris Jouett (Mercer County, Kentucky, 1788–1827) was a noted American portrait painter, known for painting portraits of many famous people. His father, Captain Jack Jouett, was known as the "Paul Revere of the South" in honor of his 1781 ride warning Southern patriots of the approach of the British. After studying law at Transylvania University (Kentucky) Matthew worked for a judge for about a year but spent most of his time painting. Jouett was married in 1812 and served in the Kentucky Volunteers during the War of 1812, rising to the rank of Captain.

In 1816 Matthew went to Philadelphia, and then on to Boston, where he studied with Gilbert Stuart. He was commissioned by the Kentucky legislature to paint a portrait of the Marquis de Lafayette. Jouett also painted Thomas Jefferson, George Rogers Clark, and Henry Clay, among many others. Although he was highly sought after and successful during his lifetime, it was long after his death, and largely due to the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition, that Jouett became one of the most highly esteemed portrait painters in the United States.