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THB1808 Masonic Tracing Board Painting, Signed J. Frothingham
About Seller
6270 Este Ave.
Cincinnati , OH 45232
United States
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About Auction
LiveJun 24, 2016 - Jun 26, 2016
Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com
View Full Catalog (392)
- Lot Description
1808 Masonic Tracing Board Painting, Signed J. Frothingham
American (Massachusetts), ca 1808. Oil on canvas. Depicting a Masonic version of King Solomon's temple, the foreground populated with symbols of Freemasonry, all underneath the Masonic eye. Signature and inscription l.l., reading J. Frothingham (3). / Portrait and Fancy Painter. / Charlestown. Near the Hay Scales. / 1808. Lot includes a 19th century metal storage tube; 72.5 x 41.5 in.
James Frothingham (1786-1864) was a prominent portraitist in Massachusetts and New York. He was born in Charlestown, MA and lived there throughout his youth and young adulthood. According to Thompson Sawyer, the Frothingham's Charlestown residence was located near the hay scales, as referenced in the painting's signature (Sawyer, 1902). As a young man in Boston, Frothingham was a student of renowned portraitist Gilbert Stuart (1755-1828).Frothingham moved to Brooklyn in 1826. Several years later, he was elected to the National Academy of Design, headquartered in Manhattan. His work is now held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Fogg Museum and the Brooklyn Museum.
Tracing boards came into use around the end of the 18th century, when Masonic lodges began to be established in permanent locations. They were primarily teaching aids for symbolism and ritual, but also decorative objects. This painting is a rare and important work by Frothingham, and exemplifies the type of secondary work that fine artists of the period took on to supplement their income.
A nearly identical painting in color and composition is housed at the Scottish Rite Masonic Museum and Library in Lexington, MA. It is unsigned but attributed to John Ritto Penniman (1782-1841) and dated ca 1820, twelve years later than the painting offered here. (Sawyer 1902: 69)
Thompson Sawyer, Timothy. Old Charlestown: Historical, Biographical, Reminiscent. Boston (MA): James H. West Company, 1902.Condition
Cracks in paint from rolling. Some paint losses to edges, particularly lower right. Scattered dirt and staining, particularly to creases in column areas. Multiple scattered round spots of damage to paint, likely from water.
Reverse of canvas has staining throughout. Also multiple number inscriptions and illegible round stamp to reverse, appears to be later. - Shipping Info
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