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Anne Hume Shippen
ca. 1796
Benjamin Trott
Born: Boston, Massachusetts
Died: Washington, District of Columbia 1843
watercolor on ivory
sight 2 5/8 x 2 1/8 in. (6.7 x 5.3 cm) oval
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Gift of Natalie Brooks Sears Shippen and William Brush Shippen
1999.87.1
Smithsonian American Art Museum
3rd Floor,
Luce Foundation Center
Description
Benjamin Trott’s portrait of Anne Hume “Nancy” Shippen is a rare example, because he painted very few women early in his career. The sitter was regarded by her numerous admirers as “sweet to look upon, and sweeter yet to hold.” To please her parents, Shippen broke off an engagement with the man she loved in order to marry Colonel Henry Beckham Livingston in 1781. The marriage established ties of kinship among the Lees, Washingtons, and Livingstons, three prominent families from the nation’s early history. Shippen ultimately left her husband and lived for the rest of her days with her parents. To punish Anne for breaking her marriage vows, Colonel Livingston kept custody of their daughter, Peggy, eventually cutting off all visits between mother and daughter.
About Benjamin Trott
Born: Boston, Massachusetts Died: Washington, District of Columbia 1843