Sallie and Amory Lawrence

Whipple, John Adams, 1822-1891. · 1850

Full-length seated portrait of Sallie (Sarah) and Amory Appleton Lawrence, ages five and two respectively, the children of Amos Adams and Sarah Elizabeth (Appleton) Lawrence. The children are seated on a sofa; their heads are together and the girl has her arm around her brother. Sarah Lawrence (1845-1915) married Peter Chardon Brooks (1831-1920) in 1866. Her brother, Amory Appleton Lawrence (1848-1912), followed in the footsteps of his father, the merchant and philanthropist, Amos Adams Lawrence. Daguerreotype is in a plain double elliptical mat surrounded by an ornate protector. The daguerreotype case is made of wood and covered with reddish brown leather. Embossed on the front and back of the case is a design composed of two birds perched on a tree branch. The motif has been identifed as "Love Birds" and dated circa 1851 (Rinhart, American miniature case art, plate 86). The case has two hook and eye clasps on the right side. In the interior of the case, facing the daguerreotype, is a red velvet pad with an embossed floral design. Running along the inside edge of the case is a gold-stamped border. The back of the daguerretoype plate has been resilvered, probably by the photographer. Pinned to inside velvet pad is a slip of paper identifying the sitters and the date of portrait. This daguerreotype is attributed to the Boston photographer, John Adams Whipple. Attribution is based on the sofa which appears in other Whipple daguerreotypes. Purchased June 2001. #2001.22.