Samuel Copp Silhouette Portrait

This is a hollow-cut silhouette portrait of Samuel Copp (b. 1787) done during the early 19th century. In this object, the hollow-cut outline has been pasted onto black paper, prior to being medallioned and framed. The object is an intermediate step between the hollow-cut seen in DL006559.01 and the completed portrait in DL006559.02. Silhouette portraits became popular during the late 18th and early 19th century due to their affordability compared to the time and expense of an oil painting.

The Copp Collection contains a variety of household objects that the Copp family of Connecticut used from around 1700 until the mid-1800s. Part of the Puritan Great Migration from England to Boston, the family eventually made their home in New London County, Connecticut, where their textiles, clothes, utensils, ceramics, books, bibles, and letters provide a vivid picture of daily life. More of the collection from the Division of Home and Community Life can be viewed by searching accession number 28810.

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