The first President of the United States, George Washington served as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and later presided over the 1787 convention that drafted the United States Constitution. He is popularly considered the driving force behind the nation’s establishment and came to be known as the “father of the country,” both during his lifetime and to this day.
The image of George Washington, whether depicted as a Revolutionary War hero or as the first president of the United States, remains one of the most persistent icons of American patriotism and the exemplification of the ideal leader: victorious and authoritative, yet compassionate and human. Our collection currently includes a number of the most iconic portraits of Washington including Rembrandt Peale’s “George Washington, Patriae Pater” and Jean-Antoine Houdon’s famed bust of 1785.
Rembrandt Peale’s famed painted portrait of of George Washington, “George Washington, Patriae Pater”
Rembrandt Peale’s famed painted portrait of of George Washington, “George Washington, Patriae Pater”, is considered by many second only to Gilbert Stuart’s iconic Athenaeum portrait of the first president. In 1795, 17-year-old Rembrandt Peale was invited by his father, famed American painter Charles Willson Peale, to accompany him to a portrait sitting with President George Washington. Although young Rembrandt was not entirely satisfied with the resulting portrait of the aging Washington, it was well-received and made his debut as a portraitist. In 1822, after a trip to Paris where he was influenced by the Neoclassical style, Peale moved to New York City, where he embarked on an attempt to paint what he hoped would become the “standard likeness” of Washington; one that would encapsulate the first President’s “mild, thoughtful & dignified, yet firm and energetic Countenance” through the study of the famed Washington portraits of John Trumbull, Gilbert Stuart and his own father.
His resulting work, Patriae Pater (Latin for “Father of Our Country”), completed in 1824, depicts Washington through an oval window, and is considered by many second only to Gilbert Stuart’s iconic Athenaeum portrait of Washington. This original painting was purchased by Congress in 1832 for $2,000 and currently hangs in the Old Senate Chamber. Peale went on to create several detailed variations of the portrait, including one of Washington in full military uniform that currently hangs in the Oval Office and the present example. The most successful painting of Peale’s 50-year career, it inspired John Marshall to have his portrait done by Peale in the same fashion.
Fine bronze bust of George Washington, after the famed Houdon bust of 1785 which is considered the most accurate depiction of Washington. Bronze, mounted on a marble pedestal.
Jean-Antoine Houdon’s famed bust of Washington is widely considered the most accurate depiction of the first president of the United States. French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon was revered for his life-like portrayals of numerous notable eighteenth-century philosophers, inventors, and political figures including Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Napoléon Bonaparte, and George Washington. In 1784, the Virginia General Assembly commissioned a statue of George Washington “to be of the finest marble and the best workmanship,” necessitating a European craftsman. The Governor of Virginia gave the responsibility of selecting the artist to Thomas Jefferson, then ambassador to France, who together with Benjamin Franklin recommended that Jean-Antoine Houdon, the most famous sculptor of the day, execute the work.
Unsatisfied to work from a drawing of Washington by Charles Willson Peale sent for the project, and lured by a potential commission for an equestrian monument by the Congress of the Confederation, Houdon agreed to travel to the United States to work directly from Washington. In early October 1785, Houdon and three assistants arrived at Washington’s plantation Mount Vernon where they spent two weeks taking detailed measurements of Washington’s arms, legs, hands and chest and made a plaster cast of his face. Before returning to France to perfect his work, Houdon presented his first draft of the bust, sculpted in terra cotta, to Washington, which he is known to have placed in his study. The final statue was carved from Carrara marble, depicting a standing life-sized Washington with a cane in his right hand and cape in his left. Chief Justice John Marshall, a contemporary of Washington’s said of the work, “Nothing in bronze or stone could be a more perfect image than this statue of the living Washington.”
Alonzo Chappel’s famed painting of Commander-in-Chief George Washington rallying the Continental Army at the Battle of Princeton; signed by the artist
Alonzo Chappel’s famed painting of Commander-in-Chief George Washington rallying the Continental Army at the Battle of Princeton remains one of the artist’s best known works. American artist Alonzo Chappel was revered for his paintings depicting the major figures and battles the American Revolution in addition to other events in early 19th-century American history. In addition to George Washington at the Battle of Princeton, his best-known works include The Battle of Tippecanoe, The Battle of Wyoming, The Battle of Long Island, The Boston Massacre, and John Smith saved by Pocahontas. George Washington at the Battle of Princeton, January 3rd 1777 was featured in John Frederick Schroder’s Life and Times of Washington; Containing a Particular Account of National Principles and Events and of the Illustrious Men of the Revolution, published in two volumes in 1857.
Large oil portrait of George Washington, after Gilbert Stuart’s iconic Landsdowne Portrait of 1796
A gift to former British Prime Minister William Petty, 1st Marquess of Lansdowne, Gilbert Stuart’s iconic life-sized Lansdowne Portrait was first painted in 1796. A depiction of President Washington’s December 7, 1795 annual address to the Fourth U.S. Congress in which he acknowledged the struggle over the highly unpopular Jay Treaty of 1794 and called for unity between America and Great Britain. This address was the last that Washington delivered to Congress in person. His Farewell Address, published in 1796 was published in newspapers and never delivered to Congress.
In England, the Lansdowne portrait was celebrated as Washington’s endorsement of the Jay Treaty. In the May 15, 1797 issue of The Oracle and Public Advertiser, it was described as “… one of the finest pictures we have seen since the death of Reynolds. The dress [Washington] wears is plain black velvet; he has his sword on, upon the hilt of which one hand rests while the other is extended, as the figure is standing and addressing the Hall of Assembly. The point of time is that when he recommended inviolable union between America and Great Britain.” Stuart painted three copies of the Lansdowne, and five portraits that were closely related to it. His most famous copy has hung in the East Room of the White House since 1800.
President George Washington’s 18th century gold frame spectacles; gifted by him to his protégé Alexander Hamilton.
In addition to the fine portraits of George Washington featured above, our collection currently includes a rare pair of early American gold framed spectacles from the collection of George Washington which he gifted to his protégé Alexander Hamilton. Read more about this exceptional piece liking two of America’s most renowned Founding Fathers here and browse our complete collection of Americana and George Washington portraits, letters, and first editions.
