Unfinished
Portrait of a Woman
Found behind the portrait of William Threet Poe
This image on acidic cardboard was behind the picture
of William Threet Poe, between his image and a wood panel that served as a
backing.. This does not appear to be a Poe family member, but must be by the
same studio that produced the image of John Poe and
Sarah Threet.
Recent
study suggests that the image of John / Sarah Poe was "produced" in the 1880s. The
suggestion is that the "charcoal" picture was done from an earlier image (a daguerreotype, perhaps, now
lost). The main clue in the John / Sarah Poe image is that the garment worn by
the woman is of a style reportedly from the 1880s, not the 1850s when the
original image would have been made (John Poe died in 1859 and Sarah in 1861).
This unfinished portrait provides further evidence
that the studio was in the habit of adding contemporary details to earlier
pictures. The charcoal lines added to the torso in this unfinished work suggest
that the "artist" planned to include a pleated garment (perhaps like
the one Sarah wears in the John Poe/Sarah Threet picture), which is different
from the clothing worn by the woman. The hat also appears to be an added
element. The dark line under the face is similar to the area on the neck of Sarah
suggesting that the artist augmented Sarah's torso.
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