Mrs. Joseph Anthony (Henrietta Hillegas)

The sitter is the wife of Joseph Anthony, Jr., Gilbert Stuart's first cousin, who trained as a silversmith, and subsequently opened a business in Philadelphia, eventually making the transition from craftsman to entrepreneur. On December 29 1785, he married Henrietta Hillegas (1766-1812). A Philadelphia native, she was the daughter of Michael Hillegas, the first treasurer of the United States. This minautre is a pendant to WAM 38.436. The miniatures were perhaps made to celebrate the couple's betrothal. The miniatures are both after oils by Stuart, which today can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. Stuart worked closely with the miniaturists Walter Robinson and Benjamin Trott, both of whom painted miniatures after Stuart's portraits in oils. It is possible that this miniature is by one of these men.