Antique Silhouette of From the Independence Hall Museum of Charles Willson Peale

Peggy McClard Antiques

Americana & Folk Art

Lovely American hollow cut silhouette from the Independence Hall museum of Charles Willson Peale. Peale was an amazing artist and scientist who made a mark on the Early Republic by painting some of the most important forefathers of our nation and interesting the general public in science. His Museum displayed exotic taxidermy (for which he invented the process) and dinosaur bones as well as his pastel portraits of statesmen that are not housed in the National Portrait Gallery in Philadelphia. While people visited his museum, they were invited to have their silhouette cut using a tracing machine invented by his friend who shared the patent with Peale. The great majority of silhouettes bearing the impressed stamp "MUSEUM" were cut by Peale's slave Moses Williams. Williams managed the silhouette business and eventually bought his freedom from money earned cutting silhouettes. He continued to run Peale's silhouette cutting as a free man. Moses Williams is one of the earliest known African-American artists.

This lovely lady has the "MUSEUM" embossed stamp below her bust-line termination. At the bottom of the silhouette paper is an early inscription "Eleanor McKaraher taken Janu, 25, 1827". Unfortunately, the inscription is written on the back of the paper so that, in order to have the inscription showing, the "MUSEUM" stamp is backwards. Someone also rubbed graphite over the back of the "MUSEUM" stamp to make it more legible (albeit backwards). I was going to frame this silhouette with the correct side outwards, but then decided that the inscription was more important than the fact that the MUSEUM stamp reads backwards. So, the lady is framed backwards in her period maple frame. She can easily be switched and I'm happy to do that for the buyer is asked. The framed size is 6 1/2" x 7 3/4". There are two tight tears below the bust line (see the last photo with arrows pointing the tears out). Still, it is a lovely circa 1827 silhouette by a silhouette artist which everyone should have in their collection.

As a note, Charles Willson Peale retired from his museum duties in 1814, leaving the management to his sons. The museum was sold in 1830.

(#4699) $550

Please see the Silhouettist Biographies page for more information about Charles Willson Peale and Moses Williams.

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