Colonel Philip Stuart

Colonel Philip Stuart (1760–1830) was a respected military leader who would eventually be elected to Congress as the representative of Maryland from 1811–19. This portrait was painted in 1803 and shows a proud survivor of the Revolutionary War. The miniature is housed in its original locket case. Inset in the back’s reveal is an intricate decoration featuring a P S cipher surrounded by swags and palms made from gold foil. The foil is cut in one continuous piece that has been laid over a woven lock of hair.