Figure 1.--We are not sure what to make of this painting. The clothing depicted, a boy wearing a tunic outfit and pantelettes perhaps in the 1830s seems very accurate. It looks to be a poor copy of an actual painting, but we have been unable to identify the original painting. The bold signature in particukar suggests a modern copy.

We notice some paintings that depict historic costuming, but look to us like modern copies. The quality and accuracies of these copies varies widely. In addition the artust and painting being copied are not always available, reducing the utility of these paintings. There are also modern paintings of historic scences that are original art work and not copies. These paintings are not very useful. The real value of artwork in assessing historic costume is that the depictions are of contemprary peopke and clothes. Modern paintings for historical accuracy woukld require a detailed knowledge of the clothing of the era, which few painters have. We are not sure what to make of this painting. The clothing depicted, a boy wearing a tunic outfit perhaps in the 1830s seems very accurate. It looks to be a poor copy of an actual painting, but we have been unable to identify the original painting.

Historic Copies

We notice some paintings that depict historic costuming, but look to us like modern copies. The quality and accuracies of these copies varies widely. In addition the artust and painting being copied are not always available, reducing the utility of these paintings. We are not sure what to make of this painting. The clothing depicted, a boy wearing a tunic outfit and pantalettes perhaps in the 1830s seems very accurate (figure 1). The accuracy to us suggests that it is a cooy of an actual 19th century portrait. It looks to be a poor copy of an actual painting, but perhaps it is just the style of the original that art critics will admire. We have been unable, unfortunately, to identify the original painting. The bold signature in particular suggests a modern copy.

Original Modern Paintings

There are also modern paintings of historic scences that are original art work and not copies. These paintings are not very useful. The real value of artwork in assessing historic costume is that the depictions are of contemprary peopke and clothes. Modern paintings for historical accuracy woukld require a detailed knowledge of the clothing of the era, which few painters have.

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Created: December 21, 2003
Last updated: December 21, 2003