Portrait Miniatures: Home
For several hundred years beginning in the early 16th century, portrait miniatures were a popular form of portraiture art throughout Britain and Europe, and later the United States. These small portraits were portable and often mounted in a case or a form of jewelry.
Serving many purposes, portrait miniatures were commonly exchanged between European courtiers during the courtship process, were gifted to symbolize friendship and loyalty, or were used by monarchs and court officials as political gifts. Regardless of specific purpose, portrait miniatures convey intimacy. Though portrait miniatures, like most portraiture in general, were reserved for upper classes, examples of portrait miniatures of sitters from Europe and Britain’s emerging merchant class show that these portraits were slightly more democratically available, even in the 1500s.
The technique of portrait miniature painting was developed and perfected by several European and British artists between the 16th and 18th centuries. However, they were most commonly painted in watercolor, generally on vellum at first and then later on ivory. Often, they were mounted onto playing cards or other forms of cardboard before being framed or encased.
The goal of this site is to provide a representational overview of portrait miniatures as they developed over continents and artistic styles, and allow visitors a glimpse into the emotional worlds captured within the small frames.
