The image is of Polly's head and shoulders. She faces the viewer's right, and looks downward. Her face is thin and oval, her nose slender and somewhat prominent. Her hair is gray (probably her natural hair powdered, rather than a wig), and arranged high on her head. A light, lace veil lies on it, and the ends fall to her shoulders and are gathered at her bodice like a fichu. She wears a soft, rust-red dress with a square neckline.

The frame in which the portrait is displayed is original. It is oval, about 1 inch wide, with low-relief applied gesso mouldings in fine scale.

Portrait of the woman for whom Franklin was, perhaps, a substitute for the father who had died