Elijah Boardman

Ralph Earl

1789 · Oil on canvas · The American Wing

Itinerant portrait painter Ralph Earl depicted the elegantly dressed dry-goods merchant Elijah Boardman (1760–1823) in his shop in New Milford, Connecticut. An unconventional setting for a full-length portrait, the work offered Boardman an opportunity to display his vast merchandise. An open door on the left reveals the shopkeeper’s textile inventory, including silks, wools, printed cottons, and linens—several of which he imported from India, China, and Europe through English ports. Although not pictured, Boardman also sold luxury goods from the Spanish West Indies, such as sugar, rum, molasses, and indigo, connecting the patrons of his Connecticut shop to the extensive networks of Atlantic trade.

Artist

Ralph Earl

Date

1789

Medium

Oil on canvas

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Bequest of Susan W. Tyler, 1979