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Photo: Courtesy of Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Inc.
⊠43.3 U.S. Early Portrait Drawings, Women
Johnson's earliest recorded portrait drawings of women are dated 1845: his portrait of Dolley Madison that indicates the setting and one of his older sister Judith which shows head and neck only. Unlike the portraits of men, his portraits of women are softer in light-dark chiaroscuro and do not exhibit the muscular structure of the face as do those of men. Johnson consolidated his draughtsman’s talents during his sojourn in Boston, where he painted Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his circle. He took about three days to complete a charcoal portrait. The style of the time was to present portraits in oval frames.
See Technical Information on Johnson's Practices for a discussion of charcoal, black chalk, crayon, and pastel. —PH
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Hills no. 43.3.17
Frances Amelia Leonard Rathbone
Alternate titles: Frances L. Rathbone; Frances Leonard Rathbone; Portrait of Frances L. Rathbone; Portrait of Frances Leonard (Mrs. William P.) Rathbone
c.1846–49
Charcoal on paper
22 x 19 in. (55.9 x 48.3 cm) (oval)
Inscribed verso: Frances Leonard Rathbone / daughter of Silas Leonard of / Augusta Maine / Married William Rathbone / of Providence R.I. / This drawing was study for oil / portrait by Eastman Johnson / said to have been one / of her admirers
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Markings
Inscribed on the backing, in a later hand: Eastman Johnson / By Eastman Johnson / about 1850 / Executed between 1846 and 1849
Sitter Biography
Sitter: Rathbone, Frances Leonard
Biography: Frances Amelia Leonard Rathbone (1827–1852). Daughter of Silas Leonard of Augusta, Maine; wife of William Penn Rathbone of Providence, Rhode Island.
Rathbone, Frances Amelia Leonard
Record last updated August 28, 2022. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Frances Amelia Leonard Rathbone, c.1846–49 (Hills no. 43.3.17)." In Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=927 (accessed on February 2, 2026).
