Looking into a Merchant's Home

First: Look at this rendition of a British-American parlor from the late eighteenth century and roll over the highlighted areas to get more information. These are objects that might be found in the home of a successful merchant living in British North America. Each object, in its own way, visually declares the identity of the owner.

John Singleton Copley, Nicholas Boylston, 1767, oil on canvas Boylston, one of Boston's most prosperous merchants, turned to the port city's leading artist when he wanted a portrait. Copley's portrait of Boylston is an ostentatious announcement of Boylston's wealth, status, and refinement.

John Singleton Copley, Rebecca Boylston, 1767, oil on canvas Families often commissioned sets of family portraits to commemorate their status; Rebecca was Nicholas' unmarried younger sister. The Boylstons commissioned portraits of several family members around this time.

Side Chair, Philadelphia, 1765-75 Philadelphia craftsmen made fancy versions of European styled seating furniture for customers able to afford the most expensive goods. The carving on this chair would have taken an experienced craftsmen many hours and made the purchase price far more expensive than a plainer form.

George III, mezzotint after a painting by Thomas Gainsborough Portraits of popular subjects also were displayed in colonial households in the form of prints, such as pictures of the colonies' new monarch, George III. Mezzotints provided more affordable (and smaller size) versions of portraits in oil on canvas.

Walls Colonial British North Americans expanded their houses when possible in the later part of the eighteenth century, allocating some rooms as domestic spaces available for greater privacy and more refined activities. The parlor or "best room" was the most formal room in a house, where guests were received and entertained. In wealthy homes the walls might be decorated with elaborate wooden paneling and plaster designs as you see here. A family would place their most expensive furnishings there, setting a stage for card playing and tea drinking.

An Accurate Map of North America, 1763, published in London Maps were another imported item, used for household decoration as well as for geographical knowledge. This map depicted "British and French dominions" after the 1763 treaty that ended the Seven Years War between the two European imperial powers.

Second: Look at a colonial portrait of Nicholas Boylston by John Singleton Copley. When Massachusetts merchants wanted to celebrate their stature they sought out the best known portraitist of their time. In 1769 Nicholas Boylston (1716-1771) was a wealthy and stylish international merchant who had made his fortune, like many enterprising colonists, during the Seven Years War (1754-63). His firm made its mark by importing the sort of consumer goods-textiles, paper, tea and glass-that Bostonians eagerly sought. Boylston was typical of the colonial merchant aristocracy that wished to use goods to fashion its identity. Boylston was a Loyalist who supported English rule in America. In the aftermath of the Townshend Acts of 1767, which taxed common imported goods, that was a potentially dangerous position. During the subsequent American boycott of English goods, Patriot leader Samuel Adams attacked Boylston's continued trade with England, and in 1769 revolutionaries seized his ship and impounded its cargo of imported goods. While you are looking at this portrait, think about how painter and patron worked together to make a statement about class and status in the Anglo-American world of late colonial British North America. What details catch your eye? Why?

Third: Move your cursor over the portrait, examine the details, and read the accompanying information. Review your initial conclusions about what you thought was significant.

Cap Boylston's head is shaved and he is wearing a "negligee cap," suggesting that he is at home. Were he out on the street or at work he would be wearing a wig, which was indicative of his elite class.

Ship A three-masted schooner sails past a lighthouse and into the harbor. This is a reference to the ships owned by Boylston's importing firm, Green and Boylston.

Ledgerbooks Stacked up on the table are oversized accounting books that recorded Boylston's business activities. Their size and number suggest Boylston's economic success.

Furniture Boylston sits on a Chippendale side chair (without arms). It was a new style of furniture made popular among the English elite by Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779). Chippendale pioneered the style in London beginning in the mid-1750s. American furniture makers began to imitate his elaborate chairs in the 1760s.

Clothing Boylston wears a blue-green morning gown, or banyan (named after a caste of Hindu merchants) made of silk damask over a beige silk waistcoat, partially unbuttoned to reveal a ruffled white linen shirt with additional ruffles on the cuffs. Elite men's clothing, like women's, was often strikingly embellished

Pose Boylston demonstrates polite behavior by sitting elegantly, his arms and legs relaxed yet poised. (How are you sitting right now? Try this pose yourself.) He sits at his writing desk with his right hand at his waist and his left arm resting on his ledgerbooks. His mouth is neither open nor inexpressive, but instead politely shows what was known as "moderate cheerfulness."

Fourth: Read another perspective on Nicholas Boylston:

Dined at Mr. Nick Boylstones, with the two Mr. Boylstones, two Mr. Smiths, Mr. Hallowell and the Ladies. An elegant Dinner indeed! Went over the House to view the Furniture, which alone cost a thousand Pounds sterling. A Seat it is for a noble Man, a Prince. The Turkey Carpets, the painted Hangings, the Marble Tables, the rich Beds with crimson Damask Curtain and Counterpins, the beautiful Chimny Clock, the Spacious Garden, are the most magnificent of any Thing I have ever seen.
Diary and Autobiography of John Adams, ed. Lyman H. Butterfield, Cambridge, 1961, I: 294.

Adams's statement demonstrates not only Boylston's taste and class, but also his position as "a noble Man, a Prince" connecting him to the English elite.

Fifth: After examining the portrait's details and reading about its sitter, write 2-3 sentences about your impressions of the Nicholas Boylston portrait. Has your opinion changed from your first observation? Did John Adams's statement affect your view? and If so, what did it reveal about the portrait...

Go to Step 2

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