New Hampshire for England. Eventually they settled in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with John as lieutenant governor. Accustomed to America and England, Frances supposedly hated her life in Nova Scotia, and had an affair with Prince William. When John found out about the affair, he was not upset with her, but he did write to King George III, William's father, and William was called back to England. Painting John Singleton Copley is often regarded as the best portraitist in the American colonies. He received many commissions, among them this commission by Theodore Atkinson Jr. Copley painted this portrait of Frances Deering Wentworth when she was 19 years old, and two years after her marriage to Theodore Atkinson Jr. In the painting she is dressed in the height of fashion with her tight bodice of grey-blue satin. She wears a pearl choker, which accents the tiny pearls woven into her hair. One hand grips the edge of the table while the other hand holds the gold chained leash to her pet flying squirrel. In colonial America the flying squirrel was kept as a domesticated pet by the elite. The placement of the flying squirrel in the young wife's portrait highlights her role as wife and colonist. Provenance In 1762, Theodore Atkinson Jr. (1737–69) wed Frances Deering Wentworth, the sitter of this portrait. Atkinson commissioned John Singleton Copley, who had painted other portraits for his family, to paint a portrait of his new wife. In 1769, Atkinson perished from consumption, and the portrait went to Atkinson's father, Theodore, Sr. (1697–1779). When Theodore Atkinson, Sr. died in 1779, the painting was bequest to George King Atkinson (d. 1788), a cousin. The painting passed to William King (1765–1820), a nephew of George King Atkinson. His daughter, Frances Atkinson Freeman (b. 1797) inherited the painting in 1820. For decades the painting had been passed from family member to family member, but Frances Atkinson Freeman sold the painting in 1872. The painting was bought by John Fisher Sheafe (1805–82) for his brother-in-law, James Lenox. Lenox was a wealthy American philanthropist, bibliophile, and art collector. He ultimately founded Lenox Library for the public to use his books and see his art collection. The Lenox Library was demolished and the Frick Collection was built by Henry Clay Frick. Upon demolition of the Lenox Library, in 1876, the books and artwork of the Lenox Library were donated along with the