A portrait of a woman in a long black dress with white shawl, lace collar, and lace cap, seated…

Mary Telfair

Artist Carl Brandt (German, 1831 - 1905)

Sitter Mary Telfair (American, 1791-1875)

Date1896

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsFramed: 89 3/4 × 64 1/4 inches (228 × 163.2 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase.

Object number1896.1

On View

On view

CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextCarl Brandt was the first director of the Telfair, serving in that capacity from 1883 until his demise in 1905. His portrait of local philanthropist Mary Telfair (1791-1875), whose bequest of her home to the public as an “academy of arts and sciences” allowed the creation of the Telfair Museum of Art, was commissioned by the museum’s trustees. Brandt chose to portray Mary as she had appeared fifteen years before her death, seated in a gold plush chair wearing a severe black dress with a white lace collar matching her lace cap. A fringed white shawl is draped on her shoulders. In testimony to her keen intellect and appreciation of literature, Mary’s left hand rests upon a book lying open on an exquisite table. The profile of the god Apollo on the cameo at her throat symbolizes her love of poetry. Her small feet rest on a crimson cushion, perhaps because her diminutive size (she was just five feet tall) prevents them from reaching the floor.

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