James. A. Perrine and son Aaron in front of their Home in Manalapan, NJ

Artist Alessandro E. Mario

Period1856

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions25 × 30 in. (63.5 × 76.2 cm)

SignedSigned lower right, "E. Mario / 1856."

ClassificationsLandscapes & Still Life

Credit LineGift of Mrs. F. A. C. Perrine, 1936

Object number956

DescriptionA bearded man in a gray suit wearing a hat sits in an open black-painted carriage with a young boy in a reddish jacket and cap in his lap. The carriage has yellow wheels. It is pulled by a gray horse. The carriage and horse, set to the center right of the painting, are depicted in front of a large, white-painted two story house with a columned porch, green-painted shutters, a chimney in the right hand gable and another positioned left of center. A wing is located on the left gable end of the main structure, also with a columned porch and chimney on its left gable end. A white picket fence encloses the yard around the house, which contains several trees still retaining late fall foliage. A moody, colorful sunset sky lends a reddish glow over the entire composition. A female figure leans out a window to the left of the front door, while a male walks from right to left along the fence accompanied by a young child.
Curatorial RemarksThis painting is one of five works by Alessandro E. Mario in the Association's collection. Three of them were commissions from James Anderson Perrine.NotesJames Anderson Perrine (1821 - 1907) with his son Aaron Combs Perrine are shown behind a horse named Lady Gray in front of their residence in Manalapan Township. The farm was bordered on the south by Route 33, and east by Wemrock Road. The property is now part of the Monmouth Battlefield State Park. Perrine and his wife, Rebecca Ann Combs, began their married life here in 1850, where three of their four children were born. Association accession records indicate that "House has since [1936] burned. Several of the outbuildings are show in painting of prize oxen [119] and are still standing."

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