Washington in His Last Illness

About this artwork

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 ...