Portrait Miniature of the Marquis de Lafayette
Unknown Artist
1775–1883
Medium
Ivory
Dimensions
1 5/8 x 1 3/8 in. (4.1 x 3.5 cm)
Classification
Painting, miniature
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of William H. Huntington, 1883
Accession Number
83.2.306
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate portrait miniature captures the Marquis de Lafayette, the French nobleman and hero of the American Revolution, in watercolor on ivory. Measuring just 1⅝ × 1⅜ inches, these tiny gems were prized 18th- and 19th-century keepsakes, often worn asoches or lockets to carry a loved one's likeness close to the heart. The unknown artist's masterful use of ivory—a smooth, luminous surface—allowed for exquisite detail and subtle color gradations, evoking the sitter's poised elegance against a neutral background. Lafayette (1757–1834) arrived in America in 1777 at age 19, forgoing his aristo...