Lot Essay
Charles Meredith DuPuy (1823-1898), a prominent Philadelphian, was a civil engineer and inventor. His daughter, Martha Haskins DuPuy Darwin (known as Maud) was close friends with Cecilia Beaux and arranged to have the artist paint her father's portrait in 1897 in New York. Maud DuPuy's father-in-law was Charles Darwin, the celebrated naturalist.