Birth Record of John Mason

Periodcirca 1767 - 1800

MediumWatercolor, pen and ink on paper

Dimensions8 × 10 in. (20.3 × 25.4 cm)

ClassificationsDrawings

Credit LineGift of Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, 1931

Object number64

DescriptionA decorative birth record in watercolor, pen and ink, on paper, with a narrow brick red outer linear border enclosing three sections or panels divided by two ornate horizontal bands. The top section encloses the name "JOHN MASON" in bold black calligraphy, with tiny diamond-shaped ornaments on the bars of both "H" and "A." Floral branches in green, pink and yellow are painted immediately above the name. Light blue semicircles, resembling swags or suggesting draperies, are placed along the inside of the top border and along the left and right sides of the name, ending at the first decorative band. Both horizontal bands are worked in a diamond and cross repeating pattern in brown ink highlighted with pink and red pigments. The center section encloses the inscription "Son of Solomon Mafon and Anna his wife / Was born January the 3d Anno Domini 1767." A decorative mariner's compass or starburst element is drawn to the right of the birth year. The lower section features a central floral arrangement in pink, blue and green in an urn atop a stepped pedestal, in which is written the phrase "Nothing I ask but which include / Of all thy earthly power / Let me kneel and pray / That I may live today." To the left of the central floral motif is an elegantly dressed female figure, her brown hair worn long and curled and her face in profile to the right, wearing an olive green gown with a lacy kerchief and sleeve ruffles, a pink rosette on the front bodice and a pink scarf or bag over her right forearm. To the right of the floral arrangement is an equally well-dressed man, his right arm outstretched towards the woman, his left hand on his hip. The man wears his brown hair in curls reaching the shoulders of his brown close-fitting coat, trimmed with lace cuffs and revealing a pink trimmed waiscoat. A spray of pink roses is placed to the extreme left of the female figure, a spray of white flowers to the extreme right of the male figure.
Curatorial RemarksThe colorful and elegantly rendered birth record of John Mason is one of at least twenty closely related such artistic family records. All of these related works were created in Burlington County, the majority for Quakers (Society of Friends). The area was settled in 1677, and by the mid 18th century Quakers made up fully half of the county's population. Although John Mason's birth year of 1767 is boldly noted on the paper, it is quite possible that the unknown artist created this record some years after the birth itself. The artist - or artists - responsible for these drawings has not been identified. Similar birth records can be found in the collections of Winterthur Museum, the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, and the American Folk Art Museum.NotesJohn Mason was born on 3 January 1767 into a Quaker family. His father Solomon Mason and mother Anna Kemble were married in September 1754. Solomon and Anna had at least six children. The family appears in a 1776 Society of Friends record, listing the children as Martha, James, Samuel, Solomon, John, and Kemble. The family lived in Evesham Township in Burlington County, but later relocated to Gloucester Township in Gloucester County by 1777. Samuel Mason was apparently a successful farmer; the Evesham Township tax rateables notes Mason's fifteen horse and cattle as part of his farm. Solomon Mason died in 1777. In his will, he directed that his youngest sons Samuel, John and Kemble be put into trade. John Mason married Lucy Combs on 28 November 1802. The couple lived in Burlington County and had at least two children: Richard Stillwell Mason (1807 - 1889) and Martha Mason (1806 - 1888), who married John H. Ross. John Mason died on 10 January 1810 at the age of 43 and was interred in the United Methodist Church Cemetery in Pemberton, Burlington County.

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