In Memory of Gen. Geo. Washington

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Status

Not on view

Datec. 1820

After Samuel Seymour (American, active 1796 - 1823)

Maker Unknown

Subject George Washington (American, 1732 - 1799)

Subject Martha Washington (American, 1731 - 1802)

Geography Made - United States

Medium/TechniqueSilk embroidery and watercolor on silk

DimensionsOverall (H x W x D): 21 1/2 in. × 27 in. × 1 1/4 in. (54.61 cm × 68.58 cm × 3.18 cm)

Credit LinePurchased by the A. Alfred Taubman Acquisition Endowment Fund, 2020

Object numberM-5834/A-C

DescriptionHorizontal embroidered mourning scene depicting three figures (two young women escorted by a young man) approaching a large, flaming classical urn sculpted with bust portraits of George and Martha Washington, with a view of the west front of Mount Vernon in the center background. The man wears a blue coat with gold-colored buttons and a buff colored waistcoat and breeches and gazes toward the monument. His right hand is placed in the breast of his coat and in his left hand he holds a hat. The woman on the left wears a high-waisted cream colored gown and carries a parasol in her right hand. The woman on the right is dressed similarly but bows her head and covers her face, weeping into a handkerchief. Several small deer appear in the right middle ground just beyond the urn. A willow tree shades the memorial urn and the view of the mansion is flanked by groves of trees. The sky, faces, hands, and arms of the figures, and the flame and sculptured details of the urn are painted in watercolor.

The picture is framed in a c. 1880 black, cove molded wood frame with narrow gilt outer and inner borders. The joints of the backing boards with the frame are covered in a printed paper with a design imitating Japanese woven fabric.

Modern glazing covers an églomisé glass mat. The églomisé mat features a wide gilt border around the sight opening and the words “In Memory of Gen. Geo. Washington.” painted below the embroidery.

Published ReferencesDavida Deutsch and Betty Ring, “Homage to Washington in Needlework and Prints,” Antiques (Feb. 1981): 415, 418.

MarkingsPainted in gilt script on the églomisé mat below the embroidery: “In Memory of Gen. Geo. Washington.”

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