Existing comment:
Commemoration of Washington (The Apotheosis of Washington)
Americans responded to the death of George Washington on December 14, 1799, with an outpouring of oratorical and pictorial tributes. One of the more elaborate mourning prints was this engraving by John James Barralet, called The Apotheosis of Washington in the press and viewed by subscribers around December 19. Drawing on classical, Christian, military, and federal symbolism, Barralet depicted Washington rising from his tomb, assisted by Father Time and Immortality. Mourning at his feet, near the military symbols of helmet, sword, and armor, are an eagle, an allegorical figure of America with her liberty cap, and a sorrowful Native American. The figures of Faith, Hope, and Charity grieve in the background.
Barralet's image was enormously popular, frequently copied on American canvases, needlework patterns, English transfer-printed creamware, and Chinese reverse painting on glass. The plate was reengraved several times because of high demand; Benjamin Tanner published this last state as the Commemoration of Washington in 1816.
John James Barralet, 1816 |