Ask the Scholar

Page 1 of 1
I can add historical knowledge about this page.

Page image

Page 1

Document source description

Though this portrait has had the title “Portrait of a Man” since 1942 when it entered the museum’s collection, the <br>sitter was identified by previous owners, including Leo Schidlof and Edward Greene, as a member of the famous Baring banking family, of whom G. C. Williamson mentions several members in his biography of George Engleheart.<br>Thomas Baring (1772–1848) was not elevated to the baronetcy until 1810. Thomas was a member of Parliament, <br>partner in the firm Baring Brothers &amp; Co. from 1804, and chairman of the London and Southwestern Railroad from 1832 to 1833. Baring Brothers &amp; Co. brokered the $15 million Louisiana Purchase in 1802, which doubled the size of the United States and financially refueled Napoleon’s war effort. <br>Thomas wears a dark blue coat with brass buttons, white waistcoat with a high white collar, bow, and frill down the front, all of which was standard attire for British gentlemen at the turn of the century. His hair is worn à l’antique (hair cut short and worn in curls, especially around the forehead), a style sported by men after the turn of the century that evokes the coiffures of statesmen of ancient Rome. The back of the frame contains plaited brown hair. There is a small area of pigment loss located at the lower right edge of the sitter’s coat.

Page data

Page
1
Source index
0
Type
photo
Media ID
5b107831dbdb07c2
Size
unknown

Document data

ID
121269
Core
obj
Type
object
DTO data
{
    "id": "121269",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Portrait of Sir Thomas Baring, 2nd Baronet",
    "description": "Though this portrait has had the title “Portrait of a Man” since 1942 when it entered the museum’s collection, the <br>sitter was identified by previous owners, including Leo Schidlof and Edward Greene, as a member of the famous Baring banking family, of whom G. C. Williamson mentions several members in his biography of George Engleheart.<br>Thomas Baring (1772–1848) was not elevated to the baronetcy until 1810. Thomas was a member of Parliament, <br>partner in the firm Baring Brothers &amp; Co. from 1804, and chairman of the London and Southwestern Railroad from 1832 to 1833. Baring Brothers &amp; Co. brokered the $15 million Louisiana Purchase in 1802, which doubled the size of the United States and financially refueled Napoleon’s war effort. <br>Thomas wears a dark blue coat with brass buttons, white waistcoat with a high white collar, bow, and frill down the front, all of which was standard attire for British gentlemen at the turn of the century. His hair is worn à l’antique (hair cut short and worn in curls, especially around the forehead), a style sported by men after the turn of the century that evokes the coiffures of statesmen of ancient Rome. The back of the frame contains plaited brown hair. There is a small area of pigment loss located at the lower right edge of the sitter’s coat.",
    "date": "1803",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1942.1140",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80017055"
    ],
    "creators": [
        3709
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Portrait Miniature"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Framed: 8.6 x 7 cm (3 3/8 x 2 3/4 in.); Unframed: 8 x 6.3 cm (3 1/8 x 2 1/2 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "England, 19th century"
    ],
    "accession": "1942.114"
}

Context sent to Scholar

Document identity
{
    "localId": "121269",
    "label": "Portrait of Sir Thomas Baring, 2nd Baronet",
    "core": "obj",
    "dtoType": "object"
}
Document source metadata
{
    "id": "121269",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Portrait of Sir Thomas Baring, 2nd Baronet",
    "description": "Though this portrait has had the title “Portrait of a Man” since 1942 when it entered the museum’s collection, the <br>sitter was identified by previous owners, including Leo Schidlof and Edward Greene, as a member of the famous Baring banking family, of whom G. C. Williamson mentions several members in his biography of George Engleheart.<br>Thomas Baring (1772–1848) was not elevated to the baronetcy until 1810. Thomas was a member of Parliament, <br>partner in the firm Baring Brothers &amp; Co. from 1804, and chairman of the London and Southwestern Railroad from 1832 to 1833. Baring Brothers &amp; Co. brokered the $15 million Louisiana Purchase in 1802, which doubled the size of the United States and financially refueled Napoleon’s war effort. <br>Thomas wears a dark blue coat with brass buttons, white waistcoat with a high white collar, bow, and frill down the front, all of which was standard attire for British gentlemen at the turn of the century. His hair is worn à l’antique (hair cut short and worn in curls, especially around the forehead), a style sported by men after the turn of the century that evokes the coiffures of statesmen of ancient Rome. The back of the frame contains plaited brown hair. There is a small area of pigment loss located at the lower right edge of the sitter’s coat.",
    "date": "1803",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1942.1140",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80017055"
    ],
    "creators": [
        3709
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Portrait Miniature"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Framed: 8.6 x 7 cm (3 3/8 x 2 3/4 in.); Unframed: 8 x 6.3 cm (3 1/8 x 2 1/2 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "England, 19th century"
    ],
    "accession": "1942.114"
}
Document source extras
{
    "tec": "watercolor on ivory in a gilt metal frame with plaited brown hair in glazed reserve on back",
    "tombstone": "Portrait of Sir Thomas Baring, 2nd Baronet, 1803. George Engleheart (British, 1752–1829). Watercolor on ivory in a gilt metal frame with plaited brown hair in glazed reserve on back; framed: 8.6 x 7 cm (3 3/8 x 2 3/4 in.); unframed: 8 x 6.3 cm (3 1/8 x 2 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Edward B. Greene Collection, 1942.1140",
    "collection": "Mod Euro - Painting 1800-1960",
    "inscriptions": [
        {
            "inscription": "signed right:  E"
        }
    ],
    "didYouKnow": "Engleheart also painted miniatures of Baring's wife and elder sons whose names are listed in the artists fee book; he was charging from 12 to 15 guineas for a miniature painting.",
    "citations": [
        {
            "citation": "Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Portrait Miniatures </em>; <em>The Edward B. Greene Collection.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1951.",
            "page_number": "Reproduced: p. 27, no. 13, pl. XVIII",
            "url": "https://archive.org/details/PortraitMiniatures/page/n65"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Cleveland Museum of Art, and Alan Chong.<em> European &amp; American Painting in the Cleveland Museum of Art: A Summary Catalogue</em>. Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1993.",
            "page_number": "p. 286"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Korkow, Cory, and Dario Robleto. <em>Disembodied: Portrait Miniatures and Their Contemporary Relatives. </em>2013.",
            "page_number": "Mentioned: p.85"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Korkow, Cory, and Jon L. Seydl.<em> British Portrait Miniatures: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> 2013.",
            "page_number": "Cat. no. 63, pp. 244-246"
        }
    ],
    "url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1942.1140",
    "creditline": "The Edward B. Greene Collection",
    "updatedAt": "2026-05-29 06:14:49.017000",
    "imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_print.jpg",
    "sourceId": 121269,
    "dept": "Modern European Painting and Sculpture",
    "coll": "Mod Euro - Painting 1800-1960",
    "med": "watercolor on ivory in a gilt metal frame with plaited brown hair in glazed reserve on back",
    "creatorTags": [
        "male"
    ],
    "thumbnail_url": null,
    "image_url": null
}
Page context
{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1942.1140/1942.1140_web.jpg",
    "mediaId": "5b107831dbdb07c2"
}