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Nineteenth Century Portrait of George Washington
STUART, GILBERT. (GEORGE WASHINGTON).
George Washington Portrait.
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Portrait of George Washington after Gilbert Stuart, American School, late 19th century oil on canvas portrait of President George Washington, after the Athaneum portrait by Gilbert Stuart. Housed in a Victorian giltwood frame with floral carved corner ornaments and oval opening. The entire piece measures 35 inches by 40 inches. An exceptional piece.
Price: $9,800.00 Item Number: 78002
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Rare Ostrich Egg engraved with a portrait of George Washington and the Great Seal of the United States; from the library of Lloyd Millard Bentsen
[WASHINGTON, GEORGE].
George Washington and Great Seal of the United States Engraved Ostrich Egg.
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Rare ostrich egg engraved with a portrait of George Washington, the Washington Coat of Arms, the Great Seal of the United States, and the Masonic compass and trowel. Mounted on a decorative brass stand. From the collection of former four-term United States Senator Lloyd Millard Bentsen who ran as the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in 1988 on the Michael Dukakis ticket and served as the the 69th United States Secretary of the Treasury under President Bill Clinton. As a primary architect of the Clinton economic plan, Bentsen contributed to a $500 billion reduction in the deficit, launching the longest period of economic growth since World War II. More than 5 million new jobs were created during his tenure as Secretary. Bentsen was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1999. In fine condition. A unique piece of Americana and with noted provenance.
Price: $7,500.00 Item Number: 119684
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Rare plaster replica of the famed Houdon bust of George Washington
ANDERSON, RONALD LEE. [JEAN-ANTOINE HOUDON; GEORGE WASHINGTON].
George Washington Houdon Bust Sculpture.
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Life-size sculpture of the head of George Washington, after the famed Houdon bust of George Washington of 1785. Plaster, the piece measures 11.5 inches by 9 inches and is attributed to American portraitist Ronald Lee Anderson who likely sculpted the work as an exercise as a college student. 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.” In fine condition. The bronze casting measures 14.25 inches in height. In near fine condition.
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 121908
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"Nothing in bronze or stone could be a more perfect image than this statue of the living Washington": Fine bronze bust of George Washington after the famed Houdon bust of 1785
HOUDON, JEAN-ANTOINE. [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
Jean-Antoine Houdon George Washington Bronze Bust.
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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. 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.” In fine condition. The bronze casting measures 14.25 inches in height. The entire piece measures 17.25 inches in height.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 123102
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"The first full-sized marble statue in New England": Fine terracotta pedestrian statue of George Washington, after Sir Francis Chantrey's Washington as a Roman Senator, 1826
CHANTREY, SIR FRANCIS. [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
Washington as a Roman Senator, 1826. [Sir Francis Chantrey George Washington Terracotta Pedestrian Statue].
: c. 1850.
Fine terracotta statue of President George Washington, after Sir Francis Chantrey’s Washington as a Roman Senator, 1826. Terracotta. In 1818, the Washington Monument Association commissioned Francis Chantrey to sculpt a pedestrian statue of George Washington in white marble. Unveiled in Doric Hall of the Massachusetts State House in November 1827, it was the first sculpture to be placed in the then new State House and the first full-sized marble statue in New England. In fine condition. The statue measures 14.75 inches in height.
Price: $5,500.00 Item Number: 123164
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FIRST EDITION OF JOHN MARSHALL’S LIFE OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, WITH THE SCARCE ATLAS VOLUME
MARSHALL, JOHN. [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
The Life of George Washington, Commander in Chief of the American Forces, During the War Which Established the Independence of His Country, and First President of the United States. [WITH] The Life of George Washington: Maps and Subscriber’s Names.
Philadelphia: C.P. Wayne 1804-1807.
First edition, first issue of the first biography of George Washington with the scarce atlas volume and list of subscribers. Octavo, six volumes, bound in full contemporary tree calf with elaborate gilt tooling to the spine, morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece portrait of Washington to volume I. With the scarce atlas volume which is bound in three quarter calf over marbled boards and contains 10 engraved maps, 9 folding, and the 22-page list of subscribers. In very good condition. A rare and complete set in an attractive contemporary binding.
Price: $14,000.00 Item Number: 131234
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First separate edition of Joseph Meredith Toner's George Washington as an Inventor and Promoter of the Useful Arts; exquisitely bound by Stikeman
TONER, JOSEPH MEREDITH [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
George Washington as an Inventor and Promoter of the Useful Arts. An Address Delivered at Mount Vernon, April 10, 1891, by J.M. Toner, M.D.
Washington, D.C.: Press of Gedney & Roberts Co 1891.
First separate edition of Turner’s address delivered at Mount Vernon on the occasion of the visit of the officers and members of the Patent Centennial Celebration. Octavo, bound in three quarter morocco over marbled boards by Stikeman & Co. with elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, morocco spine label lettered in gilt, marbled endpapers, top edge gilt. In near fine condition. Remnant of the original front wrapper bound in. Stamps of the Freedom Foundation Library. Bookplate to the pastedown. An exquisitely bound example of this rare work.
Price: $2,500.00 Item Number: 133402
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"Second only to Gilbert Stuart's Athenaeum portrait": Rembrandt Peale's "George Washington, Patriae Pater"
PEALE, REMBRANDT. [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
“George Washington, Patriae Pater” Rembrandt Peale Original Oil Painting.
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Rembrandt Peale’s famed painted portrait of George Washington, “George Washington, Patriae Pater”, considered by many second only to Gilbert Stuart’s iconic Athenaeum portrait of the first president and variations of which hang in the Oval Office and Old Senate Chamber. Oil on canvas. 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. Framed. The entire piece measures 41 inches by 33.5 inches. In fine condition. An exceptionally desirable piece of early Americana.
Price: $350,000.00 Item Number: 135084
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Samuel Johnson Pratt's Family Secrets; from the library of President George Washington; with a small note in his hand tipped in
PRATT, SAMUEL JOHNSON. [GEORGE WASHINGTON].
Family Secrets: By Mr. Pratt. Volume III. [From the Library of George Washington].
London: Printed for T.N. Longman, Paternoster-Row 1798.
Octavo, bound in full contemporary calf with a burgundy morocco spine label lettered in gilt, gilt ruling to the spine. Vol. III of the original five volumes. Tipped in to the pastedown is a small clipped note in the hand of George Washington which reads, “with the said” and the bookplate of Benjamin Lincoln Lear. The set in which this volume originated was listed in a manuscript by Washington’s private secretary Tobias Lear titled ‘Catalogue of Books received from Washington’ and bears the bookplate of Lear’s son Benjamin Lincoln Lear. Tobias Lear served as Washington’s personal secretary from 1784 until the former-President’s death in 1799. Washington unexpectedly died while Lear was visiting him at Mount Vernon on December 14, 1799, leading to Lear’s famous diary entry: “About ten o’clk, Saturday December 14, 1799, Washington made several attempts to speak to me before he could effect it, at length he said,—’I am just going. Have me decently buried; and do not let my body be put into the Vault in less than two days after I am dead.’ I bowed assent. He then looked at me again and said, ‘Do you understand me?’ I replied ‘Yes.’ “Tis well’ said he. Lear oversaw the funeral arrangements, even to the detail of measuring the corpse at 6 feet 3.5 inches long and 1 foot 9 inches from shoulder to shoulder. Lear’s only biographer, Ray Brighton, was convinced that Lear destroyed many of Washington’s letters and diary entries, which he had possession of for about a year after Washington’s death. In very good condition. Housed in a custom half morocco and folding chemise slipcase. An exceptional piece of Americana.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 139518
