Washington in His Last Illness
Object Details
- Artist
- Unidentified Artist
- Sitter
- George Washington, 22 Feb 1732 - 14 Dec 1799
- Exhibition Label
- American engravers enjoyed a steady market in the late eighteenth century with the booming demand for illustrations and popular prints. Following the Revolutionary War, George Washington’s status as a national icon spurred the fledgling industry into supplying inexpensive portraits to meet public demand. Washington’s death on December 14, 1799, would prompt an outpouring of oratorical and pictorial tributes. This deathbed scene, which alludes to published accounts of the president’s final moments, shows a physician taking Washington’s pulse with the aid of a stopwatch. Americans purchased souvenir handkerchiefs that featured this image on one side and a complementary mourning picture on the other.
- Los grabadores estadounidenses tenían un Mercado estable a fines del siglo XVIII con la creciente demanda de ilustraciones y grabados populares. Después de la Guerra de Independencia, el estatus de George Washington como símbolo nacional sirvió de estímulo a la incipiente industria, que comenzó a producir retratos de bajo costo para satisfacer la demanda del público. La muerte de Washington el 14 de diciembre de 1799 habría de producer un torrente de tributos oratorios y pictóricos. Esta escena en el lecho de muerte, inspirada en relatos publicados de los últimos momentos del presidente, muestra a un médico tomándole el pulso a Washington con ayuda de un cronómetro. También se vendieron pañuelos recordatorios con esta escena en un lado y una escena de duelo en el otro.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- 1800
- Object number
- NPG.85.137
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Medium
- Hand-colored etching with watercolor on paper
- Dimensions
- Image: 25.4 x 24.3cm (10 x 9 9/16")
- Sheet: 30.1 × 24.9cm (11 7/8 × 9 13/16")
- Mat: 45.7 x 35.6cm (18 x 14")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Home Furnishings\Furniture\Table
- Home Furnishings\Furniture\Bed
- Home Furnishings\Pillow
- Symbols & Motifs\Seal
- Container\Bottle\Decanter
- Food\Beverage\Alcoholic
- Costume\Jewelry\Watch\Pocket watch
- George Washington: Male
- George Washington: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\Revolutionary War
- George Washington: Politics and Government\Statesman\Colonial statesman
- George Washington: Business and Finance\Natural Resource Occupations\Agriculturist\Farmer
- George Washington: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\General
- George Washington: Politics and Government\Government official\President of US
- George Washington: Science and Technology\Surveyor
- George Washington: Civilian awards\Congressional Gold Medal
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.85.137
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4aca10eb5-c7db-40b4-a94e-351cf29ccfcc
Related Content
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.