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Portrait of Dr. James Mease (1771-1846)

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Collection Type

  • Art

Date

1835

GUSN

GUSN-175060

Description

Portrait of Dr. James Mease (1771-1846). Half-length portrait of a balding man wearing a black jacket over a high collared beige vest and high collared white shirt. Mease holds an open book entitled "Lecture II" in his right hand. Rust-red colored background. Gilt frame with carved leaves in the corners. James Mease was a prominent Philadelphia doctor whose daughter, Mary Middleton Mease, married John Langdon's grandson, Dr. Alfred Langdon Elwyn, Sr.

Details

Descriptive Terms

oil painting (technique)
oil paint (paint)
wood (plant material)
Masonite (TM)
Painting

Label

Centennial Acquisitions Exhibiton, October 22nd-23rd, 30th-31st, 2010:James Mease was a Philadelphia physician and author whose books included Archives of Useful Knowledge, Geological Account of the United States, and Picture of Philadelphia. Mease’s portrait came into the Langdon family through his daughter, who married John Langdon’s grandson. The artist Thomas Sully trained in England and moved to the United States to become Philadelphia’s leading portrait painter in the early nineteenth century.

Inscription

"KF 2967" (orange chalk)
"KF 2967" (Orange Chalk)
"Academy Art Shop / 989 Lexington Avenue, New York City / Near 72nd Street / PICTURE FRAMING / Etchings, Water colors, Rare prints / R H. 4-5060" (printed)
"Dr. James Mease father / of Mary Middleton Mease / (Elwyn) ; wife of John Langdon's / grandson Alfred Langdon Elwyn / Painted by Sully 1835" (handwritten)

Associated Building

Used At Governor John Langdon House (Portsmouth, N.H.),

Additional Identification Number

35.2

Maker

Sully, Thomas, 1783-1872 (Artist)

Dimensions

40 x 32.5 (HxW) (inches)

Credit Line

Bequest of Frances S. Warrick

Accession Number

2009.22.2

Places

United States

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