Antique framed print of "Washington and The Family", original ink on paper stipple engraving by Edward Savage (American, 1761 - 1817) ink on paper; stipple engraving, 19th century. Measures: frame 26" H x 32" W x 1" D. Biography Born in Princeton, Massachusetts, in 1761, Edward Savage was a self-taught painter and engraver. After working briefly as a goldsmith, by the early 1780s Savage was painting commissioned copies of portraits of prominent Bostonians originally painted by John Singleton Copley. In 1789, Harvard University sent the aspiring artist to paint a portrait of then-president George Washington. This early connection to Washington defined Savage's career. He painted at least seven portraits of Washington and two of Martha Washington. Undoubtedly his most famous work, The Washington Family, was the only contemporary painting to depict the first president at Mount Vernon.1 In 1791, Savage travelled to London to engrave and publish his initial portraits of Washington. There he produced a handful of prints and worked on his canvas for The Washington Family. Based on multiple sittings with members of the Washington family both before and after his time in London, the ambitious group portrait depicts George and Martha Washington, Martha's grandchildren (Eleanor Parke Custis and George Washington Parke Custis), and slave William Lee around a table at Mount Vernon. Pierre Charles L'Enfant's plan for the new capitol at Washington rests on the table at the centre of the picture, while columns and swags frame Mount Vernon's Potomac River view in the background. By depicting Washington dressed in his military uniform surrounded by his family and with his hand resting on evidence of his greatest presidential achievement, The Washington Family echoes the comparison between Washington and the Roman general Cincinnatus so familiar to late eighteenth-century Americans.2 Upon his return to the United States in 1794, Savage married Sarah Seaver, completed his group portrait of the Washingtons, and immediately set to work exhibiting and engraving the large-scale painting. Washington himself ordered four copies, hanging one in the family dining room at Mount Vernon.

Overall very good condition with only minor matte discoloration. Wear consistent with age and use. Notwithstanding this report or any discussions concerning condition of this item(s), all lots are offered and sold "as is" in keeping with the "Terms and Conditions" in this catalog.