Miriam Etting Myers

Miriam Etting Meyers (Mrs. Jacob Meyers) was born in 1787 and died in 1808. Her father, Solomon Etting, whose portrait was also painted by Benjamin Trott, led the movement in Maryland’s statehouse for the “Jew Bill,” which permitted Jews in Maryland to hold public office without having to first renounce their faith. This miniature was first attributed to Edward Greene Malbone, a rival portraitist whose success Trott greatly envied. Malbone had approached Trott in 1809 in hopes that the two painters could exchange some of their works and learn from each other’s strengths, but Trott quickly rejected the idea.