European-born miniaturist Nathaniel Hancock’s assured style and delicate stipple technique suggest that he was professionally trained. A heart playing card found inside this locket containing his self-portrait implies that the miniature may have been a love token. The artist probably painted it for his wife, Elizabeth, but sometime after her death in 1792, he gave it as a gift to Nathaniel Foster of Framingham, Massachusetts. The itinerant Hancock sought clients from Virginia to New Hampshire, and spent several years in Massachusetts, where his friendship with the Foster family led to a number of commissions. Although little is known about Hancock’s origins or training, he first advertised his services in Boston, offering miniatures finished in “an elegant style,” with gold cases and hairwork. In addition to painting miniatures, Hancock taught watercolor painting, created needlework patterns, and was probably an engraver. He may have incised the bright-cut pattern on the reverse of the distinctive cartridge-edged locket that houses the portrait.