Oil on board, signed and dated at lower left "J. R. Key '71," oval form housed in a period (likely original) gilt wood frame with applied fruit form composition ornament, the verso with later inscription reading "(illegible) / Two of Three."

SS 8.25 x 11.5 in.; DOA 11.5 x 14.25 in.

Collection of the late Martha Sims, Durham, North Carolina.

John Ross Key, grandson of Francis Scott Key of Star-Spangled Banner fame, earned his own reputation as an artist of the Fort Sumter siege. He studied in New York, Munich, and Paris, finally establishing a studio in Boston following the Civil War. He traveled and painted throughout California during the late 1860s and early 1870s. He finally returned to the East Coast, living in both Maryland and D.C.

$400 - 600