Lot 453: Edwin Plummer (Massachusetts, c. 1802-1880) Four Portraits of Children. Unsigned. Watercolor and gouache on paper, 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 in., u

Edwin Plummer (Massachusetts, c. 1802-1880)

Four Portraits of Children. Unsigned. Watercolor and gouache on paper, 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 in., unframed, each child seated and shown in profile, three girls and a boy thought to be siblings, the boy wearing a black jacket shown in a paint-decorated chair; the oldest girl in a black dress with ruffled collar and wearing a thin gold chain around her neck and a comb and a pink ribbon in her hair; the middle girl in a green dress with lace collar and cuffs, wearing a thin gold chain around her neck and a gray and red ribbon in her hair; and the youngest in a pink polka-dot dress with lace collar and cuffs, wearing a thin black necklace and a comb and ribbon in her hair; sold with two smaller watercolor portraits thought to be the children's parents. Condition: Minor toning to paper, losses to black pigment in oldest girl's dress and the upholstery behind the youngest girl.

Provenance: Acquired at a Massachusetts on-site auction near to Plummer's former home, in 1994. Because of the circumstances surrounding their acquisition, there is speculation that these children may be related to Plummer himself.

Literature: For a discussion of Plummer's work, see Antiques & Fine Art Summer/Autumn 2011, "Edwin Plummer and His 'Portrait Likenesses,'" by Deborah Child, pp. 188-195. The portrait of the boy offered here is illustrated and discussed.