Trumbull's Declaration of Independence

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).
John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence
John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence

John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence is an iconic 12- by 18-foot painting in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda which depicts the presentation of the draft of the Declaration to Congress.

Trumbull painted many of the figures in the picture from life and visited Independence Hall as well to depict the room in which the Second Continental Congress met.

The painting is often mistakenly called the "Signing of the Declaration of Independence," but only shows the presentation of the draft. While this event did take place, it was not actually in the presence of all the people in the picture.

The oil-on-canvas work was commissioned in 1817; purchased 1819; and placed in 1826 in the Rotunda.

A close inspection reveals that Thomas Jefferson's foot is stepping on John Adam's, symbolizing their relationship as political enemies.[1] Based on the erroneous belief that this image is an artistic mistake, this part of the image was changed on the $2 bill version.[citation needed]

Trumbull's work shows 42 of the 56 signers of the Declaration, and five figures in the painting did not sign.

Contents

[edit] Unpictured signers

There were 14 signers of the Declaration who did not appear in the painting:

[edit] On the two-dollar bill

2 dollars bill (reverse)

Trumbull's painting is the source of the picture on the reverse of the two-dollar bill, which cuts out the farthest four figures on the left (George Wythe, William Whipple, Josiah Bartlett and Thomas Lynch); the farthest two figures on the right (Thomas McKean and Philip Livingston); and seated in the left rear, George Walton. The bill features 41 of the 48 figures from Trumbull's painting.

[edit] Key to historical figures depicted in the painting

U.S government's key to the painting
U.S government's key to the painting

The following key to the figures in the painting follows the numbering used by the U.S. Government publication "Art of the Capitol" (in the illustration of the key shown in this section) but provides a different (hopefully clearer) description of which figure is where in the painting, so numbers are not entirely in order.

Key to figures ("left" and "right" are the viewer's "left" and "right"; in each group, listed from left to right):

Four men seated on the far left:

Seated at the table on the left:

Seated together to the right of Harrison and in front of the standing figures:

John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence
John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence

Five figures standing together on the left:

Three seated figures in the back between the two sets of standing figures:

Set of three figures standing together in the back:

Ten figures seated:

Five figures standing in front:

Four background figures seated together near the right corner of the room:

Two figures standing in the right corner of the room:

Two foreground figures at the central table:

Three figures standing at right:

Two figures seated at far right:

[edit] Similar paintings

Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States by Howard Chandler Christy, is a similar painting depicting members of the Constitutional Convention. Painted in the Twentieth century, the work is also located in the U.S. Capitol.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ [1]The detail is mentioned at this Web site, accessed February 4, 2007

[edit] External links

[edit] Keys to the figures

[edit] Other

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../t/r/u/Trumbull%27s_Declaration_of_Independence_51f8.html"