H 87.0 cm x W 75.0 cm x D 5.0 cm
A 1/2 portrait of Dr. Robert Charles Archibald McLean. He is wearing a black scholar's robe/gown with grey trim, the robe slipped off the figure's left shoulder. The figure grasps the outer edge of the robe with his left hand, holding it in place on his right shoulder. Beneath the gown the figure is wearing a black topcoat, grey/ivory waistcoat, a white collared shirt with gold studs, and a black stock tie. He is facing slightly to the left and has hazel eyes, light brown wavy hair and mutton-chop sideburns. In the background to the left is a multi-hued sunset sky; the background behind the sitter is uniformly dark. The painting is not signed.
The painting is housed in a mid-19th century gilt wood and plaster frame. Swept rail back edge with scrollwork centres and corners; plain scotia; swept rail top edge with scrollwork corners and edges; swept rail top edge with foliated cabochon corners with scrollwork, and acanthus and scrollwork centres; astragal and cove to bevelled sight edge.
Born in Martinique, West Indies where his Irish father was serving in the Royal Artillery; McLean was a physician and one of the most popular men in Kingston. Only mayor for a few months, McLean’s term expired when Kingston became a city on June 13, 1846. Although it was expected he would run again, he did not, and within a few years retired to Ernestown (west of Kingston).
