Portrait of a Young Girl

Mary Jane Simes, born Baltimore, MD 1807-died Baltimore, MD 1872 · 1825

The identity of the young girl in this miniature is unknown, but it has been suggested that she was a member of the Peale family, as this miniature was purchased from Peale descendants. Children in the 1800s were often dressed as “small adults,” and here the sitter wears a child’s version of a high-waisted Empire gown, fashionable among ladies in the early part of the century.