 | ||
 | | |
 | ||
| | |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Click photo for alternate views | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| | | | | | | | | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pair of Folk Portraits of Seth Starbuck and Ruth Swain Starbuck with their Daughter, Hannah Starbuck. Nantucket, Massachusetts c. 1810
Description Pair of small watercolor folk portraits, the first of a gentleman, the second of his wife holding their child, all three wearing period dress against a vivid yellow background. Old, but not original, tiger maple frames. Inscribed on the reverse “Seth Starbuck” and “Mrs. Starbuck and Baby”. With well-executed details that capture the essence of the sitters, and depicting members of the prominent Starbuck family of Nantucket, whose ancestors were part of the original group of Nantucket founding families, this pair of paintings is delightful and appealing when considered from every aspect. They represent fine examples of early American folk portraiture.
Seth Starbuck, son of Matthew Starbuck (1750-1815), was born on Nantucket, January 27, 1779 and married Ruth Swain (b. 1781) on December 8, 1801. Their child, Hannah Starbuck, named after Ruth’s mother, was born December 12, 1802 and died May 27, 1812, at age 9. Shortly thereafter, the couple moved to Guilford, North Carolina. Both Seth and Ruth died in North Carolina the same year- 1848.
Background “The Nantucket Starbucks” Seth Starbuck is a descendant of Edward Starbuck (1604-1690) who first came to Nantucket Island in 1659 from Salisbury, Wales. The Starbuck family was at the very forefront of Nantucket’s fishing and whaling activities. Subsequent generations of Starbucks owed their prosperity to the increased demand for whale oil, Nantucket’s staple commodity. Toward the end of the 18th century, Nantucket ships employed over 2000 seamen, approximately the size of Nantucket’s year-round adult male population today. The growth was spurred from London’s demand for whale oil after the installation of street lamps to improve public safety. The British textile industry also used whale oil to process wool prior to spinning. Closer to home, local candle manufacturing spurred demand for head matter, the common name for spermaceti, the waxy substance in the large cavity of the sperm whale’s head, and members of the Starbuck family (specifically Joseph Starbuck and his partner William Rotch) were also at the forefront of Nantucket’s candle industry. The Starbucks clearly played an important role in the island’s early history.
Dimensions: 7 1/4" x 8 1/4". Provenance: Wayne Pratt Antiques Resources: Gambee, Robert. Nantucket Impressions. New York: W.W. Norton, 2001. | ||
| | |
Silvermine Antiques - New Canaan, CT | ||
| | |
Copyright 2006 Silvermine Antiques. All Rights Reserved. | ||
| | |