Portrait of a Brother and Postmortem Sister

c. 1850

American 19th Century

Associated Names
This grayscale photograph shows two children sitting closely together. The boy on the right has his arm around the girl on the left. The boy has short, dark hair and a neutral expression as he looks out at us. He is dressed in a dark suit with a white shirt and a black bow tie. The girl has light-colored hair styled away from her face. Her eyes are closed, and her mouth looks partially open. She is wearing a light-colored dress with a necklace featuring a round pendant. Her limbs are very thin. The background is plain. The photo is surrounded by an ornate, gold-toned decorative frame.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    ambrotype with applied color

  • Credit Line

    The Ross J. Kelbaugh Collection

  • Dimensions

    image (visible): 9 × 6.5 cm (3 9/16 × 2 9/16 in.)
    mat: 10.8 × 8.2 cm (4 1/4 × 3 1/4 in.)
    case: 11.9 × 9.7 × 1.4 cm (4 11/16 × 3 13/16 × 9/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2023.146.23


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Ross Kelbaugh, Marriottsville, MD; gift to NGA, 2023.

Associated Names

Inscriptions

by unknown hand, top edge of case in black ink on applied sticker: 8ELH; by Ross Kelbaugh, top edge of case in black ink on applied sticker: KC135


You may be interested in

Loading Results