The Old Print Shop

Benjamin Franklin. Ne a Boston, dans la nouvelle Angleterre, le 17 Janv. 1706.

  • ARTIST: Joseph-Silfrede Duplessis

  • MEDIUM: Engraving,

    DATE: 1778

  • EDITION SIZE: Image 10 5/8 x 7" (26.9 x 17.9 cm)

  • DESCRIPTION: Engraved by Juste Chevillet. Drawn from the cabinet “collection” of M de Le Ray de Chaumont.<br><br> This print is based on the famous Duplessis portrait of Franklin, owned by Le Ray de Chaumant, Franklin’s patron and host during his trip to France. The print was most likely issued to coincide with the exhibition of Duplessis’ oil portrait in the French Royal Academy’s Salon of 1779. The oil painting was favored by Franklin, who would frequently advise artists to use the Duplessis portrait for likeness rather than grant them a sitting. In the portrait, Franklin is facing left, wearing a ruffled shirt, waistcoat, and top coat with a fur collar. The print employs the “port-hole” convention- popular at the time. The portrait is framed within an oval porthole in a stone and plaster wall. The oval is seen resting on a projected base. The base is engraved with his name, birth date, and below, a poetic verse praising Franklin.

  • ADDITIONAL INFO:

  • CONDITION: Good condition, backed on paper and a soft crease through the upper part of the image.

  • REFERENCE: Sellers, Plate 27.