# Robert Edwards Carter

**Sarah C. Frothingham** (born 1821-died New York City 1861)  
ca. 1840  
watercolor on ivory  
sight 2 3/8 x 1 7/8 in. (6.0 x 4.8 cm) rectangle

Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 1928.1.2. [The museum's record](https://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=8688).

## About this work

Robert Edwards Carter was the artist’s uncle. Conservation of this miniature was made possible through a generous grant provided by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee.

_Text from the Smithsonian American Art Museum._

Sarah C. Frothingham painted this in about 1840, aged 19. It is now at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC.

### How it was made

- **Watercolour on ivory.** Thin sheets of ivory gave watercolour a luminous, skin-like glow, which made them the favourite support for portrait miniatures from the early 1700s.
- **Watercolour.** Pigment in gum arabic, thinned with water and laid in transparent washes. Nothing white is painted: the light is the paper showing through.

### [Sarah C. Frothingham](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/sarah-c-frothingham)

born 1821-died New York City 1861

## Facts

- Type: Painting-Miniature
- The artist was 19
- Real size: about 2½ × 2 in (6 × 5 cm). The original is small: even the 8 × 10 in print shows it larger than life.
- Century: 19th century
- Subjects: Men, Portraits
- Colour: brown
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1873.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1873/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/robert-edwards-carter-si-saam-1928-1-2).