Portrait of Two Boys

1850s

William Edward Kilburn

Associated Names
William Edward Kilburn

Artist, British, 1818 - 1891

The image shows two young boys seated in a vintage-style portrait. They are sitting on ornate chairs with red upholstery, facing slightly toward the camera. The boy on the left has a round face, dark eyes, and chin-length hair parted in the middle. The boy on the right has a similar hairstyle, but with his hair parted on the side and slightly longer facial features. They are dressed in velvet-like jackets with velvet belts, large collars, and bow ties. The boy on the left is holding papers or illustrations in his lap, and the boy on the right is resting his hands on similar documents. The background is a painted backdrop showing a cloudy sky. The portrait is housed in a framed daguerreotype case.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    stereoscopic daguerreotypes with applied color

  • Credit Line

    Robert B. Menschel and the Vital Projects Fund

  • Dimensions

    image (each): 6.1 × 4.5 cm (2 3/8 × 1 3/4 in.)
    framed: 8 × 11.5 × 0.9 cm (3 1/8 × 4 1/2 × 3/8 in.)
    case (closed): 9.2 × 13.2 × 1.8 cm (3 5/8 × 5 3/16 × 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2013.49.3


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London); NGA purchase, 2013.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2019

  • The Eye of the Sun: Nineteenth-Century Photographs from the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2019, unnumbered catalogue.

Inscriptions

on cover of daguerreotype case, center, blind stamped in leather: BY APPOINTMENT / [seal of Royal Warrant] / Mr. KILBURN / 234 REGENT STREET; on viewing panel, along bottom, stamped in gilt: KILBURN'S STEREOSCOPE, / REGd 12th JANY 1853. / BRÈVETÉ À PARIS.

Wikidata ID

Q64171139

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