Portrait of a Woman

John H. Burls, New Malden, Surrey, by March 31, 1949 [1];

Purchased from his sale, Fine Portrait Miniatures, Sotheby’s, London, March 31, 1949, lot 60, as A Girl, by Leggatt Brothers, London, probably on behalf of Mr. John W. (1905–2000) and Mrs. Martha Jane (1906–2011) Starr, Kansas City, MO, 1949–1958 [2];

Their gift to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1958.

Notes

[1] The sale was “The Property of J. H. Burls, Esq., New Malden, Surrey.” There was a John H. Burls of 11 Ancaster Crescent, New Malden, Surrey, listed in Leathergoods 103–04 (1968): 88.

[2] According to the lot description, “A Gold Ring, the oval bezel with a small Miniature of a Girl, by John Smart, signed, head and gaze three-quarters dexter, a gauze veil over her golden hair, 1 in. [See Illustration, Plate V].”

An annotated sales catalogue is located at the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Miller Nichols Library and is likely annotated by Mr. or Mrs. Starr with a circled lot number and “Leggatt £36.” According to the attached price list, Leggatt bought lot 60 for £36. Archival research has shown that Leggatt Brothers served as purchasing agents for the Starrs. See correspondence between Betty Hogg and Martha Jane Starr, May 15 and June 3, 1950, Nelson-Atkins curatorial files. Hogg assisted Mrs. Starr in purchasing a group of miniatures at this sale, including two by Smart (Portrait of Charles Stewart, 7th Earl of Traquair, ca. 1790 and this one. See group of letters between Martha Jane Starr and Betty Hogg, undated, box 18, folder 25, Martha Jane Starr Collection, LaBudde Special Collections, University of Missouri-Kansas City.