Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
1983.01 |
Object Name |
Painting |
Title |
Miniature Portrait of Edward Shippen |
Other Name |
Miniature |
Artist |
Unknown |
Date |
ca. 1796 |
Description |
Half length portrait of figure with fair complexion, turned to his right, head turned facing center. The subject has white hair, and wears a white shirt and cravat and a dark jacket. Portrait is set in a gold frame with a dark matting. |
Label |
This miniature portrait depicts Edward Shippen, an early APS member who became chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1799. Before the Revolution, Shippen was a judge of the admiralty and provincial counselor in Pennsylvania. A moderate Loyalist, he lost many of his appointments because the revolutionary government disapproved of individuals holding multiple offices. Though he opposed the war, Shippen also spoke out against the increase of royal power in the colonies. This belief, along with his refusal to retreat from Philadelphia with the British Army and 3000 other civilians in 1777, allowed him to retain his social status after the Revolution. His family, however, was linked to the Loyalists in another way; one of his daughters became the second wife of notorious traitor Benedict Arnold. This miniature portrait is a copy of a formal portrait by Gilbert Stuart from 1795, now at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. |
Medium |
Oil on copper plate |
Dimensions |
H-8.25 W-7.125 inches |
Dimension Details |
Framed |
Credit line |
American Philosophical Society. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. William F. Machold, 1982. |
Search Terms |
18th century eighteenth century painting politics |