Welch Type Gilded Frame

This frame was made for a John Singleton Copley portrait owned by a collector. Typical of frames carved by Welch in Boston for most of Copley’s portraits, it has openwork corners and peaked concave sides and top. Welch used these corners on many size frames and added another pierced element halfway up the sides when framing a larger canvas. Go to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston to see lots of Copley portraits with Welch frames. Gesso and gold leaf on pine.