Portrait of a Woman and Baby

1850s

Charles H. Williamson

Associated Names
Charles H. Williamson

Artist, American, born Scotland, 1826 - 1874

The image shows two individuals, a woman, and a baby, both captured from the waist up. The woman is seated and gently holding the baby on her lap, positioned closely together facing the camera. She has smooth hair parted in the middle and styled back, framing her face. Her facial features include soft, serene eyes and a slight smile. The baby has chubby cheeks, light-colored eyes, and curly light hair, wearing a bonnet or cap. The woman is dressed in a dark, long-sleeved dress, adorned with a lace collar, and white under-sleeves that peek out at her wrists. The baby is dressed in a light-colored garment that covers their chest and shoulders. The background is dark. The image is bordered by an ornate, golden frame with intricate patterns.

Media Options

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

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    daguerreotype with applied color

  • Credit Line

    Purchased as the Gift of the Richard King Mellon Foundation

  • Dimensions

    image (visible): 6.6 × 5.4 cm (2 5/8 × 2 1/8 in.)
    mat: 8.1 × 6.9 cm (3 3/16 × 2 11/16 in.)
    case (closed): 9.4 × 8.2 × 1.5 cm (3 11/16 × 3 1/4 × 9/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2018.7.47


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Paul Zimmer, Idaho); (Charles Isaacs Photographs Inc., New York), 1989; NGA purchase, 2018.

Associated Names

Inscriptions

on brass mat, bottom left embossed: WILLIAMSON / BROOKLYN NY

Wikidata ID

Q64145752

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