Billethead from "Myrtie B. Crowley"

Art Historical Context

In this and graphite drawing, a carved wooden billethead is shown in three-quarter view against a plain background. Its surface displays swirling acanthus leaves and tight volutes in warm reddish-brown tones, contrasted with cooler blue-gray recesses. Visible cracks, flaking paint, and worn edges convey the object’s age and weathered condition, while the artist’s precise lines and subtle shading capture the depth of the carving. Jane Iverson created this work around 1939 as part of the Index of American Design, using watercolor and graphite on paperboard to record the billethead from the vessel “Myrtie B. Crowley.” The original carving measured twenty-two inches long, and Iverson’s rendering carefully preserves its form and faded colors. Through such detailed studies, the Index of American Design documented regional American craftsmanship, allowing later generations to study these decorative traditions at the National Gallery of Art.

About the Artist

Jane Iverson · 1910–1997

Jane Iverson is an artist whose biographical details — including her dates, nationality, and training — are not well represented in the major art historical reference sources currently available. The limited documentation surrounding her career makes it difficult to characterize her practice in relation to any specific school, movement, or period. Works attributed to Iverson in museum collections...