Alexander Hamilton (Ceracchi)
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| Artist | Giuseppe Ceracchi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1794 |
| Type | Sculpture |
| Material | White marble |
| Subject | Alexander Hamilton |
| Dimensions | 63.5 cm × 35.6 cm × 30.5 cm (25.0 in × 14.0 in × 12.0 in) |
Alexander Hamilton is a marble bust portrait of Alexander Hamilton, done in the style of a Roman Senator, by the Italian sculptor Giuseppe Ceracchi.[1] Ceracchi also created many replicas, in both marble and plaster. The bust was later used as a model for sculptures and paintings.
History
Ceracchi created a terracotta model of Hamilton, from life, about 1791–92.[2] This was then sent to Rome, where he created the marble version. As written to Hamilton in July 1792, Ceracchi was "impatient to receive the clay that I had the satisfaction of forming from your witty and significant physiognomy".[3] He returned to deliver the bust to Hamilton in 1794, but did not receive payment until later. On March 3, 1796, Hamilton wrote in his cash book: "for this sum through delicacy paid upon cherachi’s draft for making my bust on his own importunity & as a favour to him $620"[4]
The Hamilton family kept the bust until 1896 when it was bequeathed to the New York Public Library along with the portrait painting of George Washington, The Constable-Hamilton Portrait, by Gilbert Stuart.[5] Both were sold together, as requested by the will, on November 30, 2005 to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art for over $8 million.[2]
Description
Ceracchi portrayed Hamilton in the style of a Roman Senator, with wavy hair and bare-chested, wearing a ribbon of the Order of the Cincinnati over his right shoulder.[1][2]
Inscription
The original work is inscribed on the back in Latin:[5]
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DE FACIE PHILADELPHIAE |
This translates to "Executed in Philadelphia and copied in Florence, Executed by Joseph Ceracchi, 1794."[2]
Legacy
The painter John Trumbull used the bust as model for a series of 1804–08 portraits of Hamilton.[6]
The first U.S. Postal Service stamp to honor Hamilton was a 1870 30-cent stamp using this bust as a model.[7]
In 1880, the bust owned by Hamilton's son, John C. Hamilton, was used as a model for the head of the granite statue by Carl Conrads.[8]
At the Hamilton Grange National Memorial, the National Park Service has installed a touch-sceen display that features an avatar modeled after Ceracchi's bust.[9]
While Ceracchi, born on July 4, 1751, created busts for several founding fathers, his life did not end well. After returning to Europe, he first celebrated Napoleon with a bust, but then turned against him. After an unsuccessful plot, Napoleon had him guillotined at the Place de Grève on January 30, 1801.[8][10]
Gallery
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Portrait by John Trumbull
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30-cent U.S. stamp
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Statue by Carl Conrads
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bust of Alexander Hamilton by Giuseppe Ceracchi. |
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