Name/Title
Portrait of Ann Wyche TaylorEntry/Object ID
2008.14.2Description
Oil on canvas painting of an elderly white woman in a half-length portrait. Depicted against a dark backdrop, the figure has brown eyes and stares outward at the viewer. A white bonnet with a black ribbon is tucked securely around her face, hiding any hair. She wears black attire, and no details within the textile are visible. The painting is secured in a wooden frame.Type of Painting
EaselArtwork Details
Medium
Oil on CanvasSubject Person
Ann Wyche TaylorContext
Commissioned by her son Governor John Taylor (1770–1832), this portrait depicts Ann Wyche Taylor (1749–1834) in her seventies or early eighties. In 1767, she married Colonel Thomas Taylor (1743–1833), another member of a prominent Virginian family. Following their marriage, the Taylors forced enslaved laborers to build "The Plains," a plantation that sprawled outwards from the present-day intersection of Barnwell and Richland streets. By 1833, they enslaved over 200 women, men, and children in the Midlands. While her husband advocated for American independence and fought in the Revolutionary War, Ann raised their six eldest children.
In need of conservation since its acquisition in 2008, this portrait, along with its companion piece, will be added to HC’s Adopt-an-Artifact program, an initiative that offers a tangible opportunity to support the objects in Historic Columbia's care. To donate, please go to: https://www.historiccolumbia.org/adopt-an-artifact.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
James DeVeauxAttribution
Attributed toDate made
circa 1830Dimensions
Dimension Description
frameHeight
36-1/4 inWidth
31-3/8 inDimension Description
canvasHeight
29-1/8 inWidth
24-3/8 in
