# Woman Holding a Book

**Erastus Salisbury Field** (American, 1805–1900)  
c. 1835  
oil on canvas  
overall: 75.7 x 60.5 cm (29 13/16 x 23 13/16 in.)

Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1980.62.7. [The museum's record](https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.59900.html).

## About this work

Erastus Salisbury Field painted this in about 1835, aged 30. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

### What you’re looking at

The image shows a woman portrait from the waist up. She is seated upright, holding a book in her left hand. She has blue eyes, dark brown hair styled with rolls and a braided crown, and wears elegant 19th-century clothing with a lace collar, a blue-gray garment, and gold earrings. The background is plain, and she is seated on a wooden chair.

_Description from the National Gallery of Art._

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Erastus Salisbury Field](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/erastus-salisbury-field)

American, 1805–1900

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- The artist was 30
- Real size: about 30 × 24 in (76 × 61 cm). The 20 × 30 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 19th century
- Subjects: female
- Colour: black
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1594.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1594/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86; 24 × 36 in $108
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208; 24 × 36 in $258
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118; 20 × 30 in $148
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5; 24 × 36 in $5

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/woman-holding-a-book-nga-59900).