Feb 7, 2007
Dec 8, 2009

Nathaniel Hurd

Nathaniel Hurd

c. 1765

John Singleton Copley

(American, 1738–1815)

Oil on canvas

Framed: 90.5 x 78 x 6.5 cm (35 5/8 x 30 11/16 x 2 9/16 in.); Unframed: 76.2 x 64.8 cm (30 x 25 1/2 in.)

Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust 1915.534

Did you know?

The artist Copley’s in-laws were consignees for the cargo dumped during the Boston Tea Party.

Description

Hurd was a prominent silversmith and engraver in Boston, and the warm gaze and unforced smile in his portrait by Copley suggest the friendship between the two artists. Hurd's open-collared shirt, as well as the rakishly tilted turban that covers his shaved head in place of a ceremonial powdered wig, create an air of informality that is unusual for a portrait of this time.

Video

A Skilled Silversmith
Dressed for Success
Patriot or Loyalist?
Nathaniel Hurd
See also

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