Sale 2486, Part I - The Harold Holzer Collection of Lincolniana, September 27, 2018

49 c   (PAINTINGS.) [Prior, William M.?] Reverse glass portrait of Lincoln. Oil on glass, 23 1 / 2 x 18 inches to sight, unsigned; minimal wear, in period frame. Np, circa 1864-73 [1,500/2,500] This portrait has been attributed to the well-known folk artist William Matthew Prior (1806-1873). A Maine native who did most of his work in the Boston area, Prior was best known for family portraits, but also produced numerous portraits of Lincoln and Washington. This present example, and almost all of his other Lincolns, were based on the Brady studio portrait (Ostendorf 91) which currently graces the $5 bill. Prior’s brother-in-law Sturtevant J. Hamblin was also an artist who worked in a nearly indistinguishable style. Works of the Prior-Hamblin school can be found in numerous institutional collections, and were featured in a 2013 exhibition at the American Folk Art Museum, “Artist and Visionary: William Matthew Prior Revealed.” See also R. Gerald McMurtry, “William M. Prior’s Portraits of Lincoln on Glass,” in Lincoln Lore, September 1966, pages 1-2.