Extraordinary William Lewis Miniature Portrait c1833
Directory: Fine Art: Paintings: Miniatures: Pre 1837 VR: Item # 1382239
Please refer to our stock # a1664 when inquiring.
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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. William Lewis was born in Salem MA in 1788 and worked there until 1821, when he moved to Boston. He continued painting there until 1838, with intermittent trips to Rhode Island and back to Salem. Lewis exhibited at the Boston Athenaeum and at the Boston Mechanics' Association. The date of his death is not known. A number of his miniatures are displayed at the Essex Institute in Salem and the Rhode Island Historical Society in Providence.
2. There is no question that the William Lewis referenced in Note 1 above was born in Salem, and is the William Lewis that many miniatures have been attributed to. However, several reference materials have also indicated that there was a William Lewis born in London who later came to Massachusetts and worked in roughly the same time period as the other Lewis did. If such a Lewis does exist, the painting in this listing would probably have been done by him as the quality is higher than that of the Salem born Lewis. Research is continuing to determine if, in fact, there were two Lewises, or just one with some misleading background information.
