Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
58.P.48 |
Object Name |
Painting |
Title |
Portrait of Robert Patterson |
Artist |
Peale, Rembrandt |
Date |
1830 |
Description |
Rembrandt Peale painted this half-length portrait of Robert Patterson in 1830, copying his own original 1812 portrait. Seated sideways with his arm hooked behind the chair, the subject directs his gaze upward towards his right in three-quarter profile. He wears a double-breasted cordovan-colored overcoat, a charcoal-colored vest, and a translucent, pleated white cravat and bow-tie. His fleshy face is rendered in detail, with naturalistically figured cheeks, jowls, dark eyes, and nose. He has a receding hairline with short, wispy, white hair. The background fades from dark to light brown behind the sitter. The surface of the canvas is unusually regular; this consistency is likely the result of conservation efforts from 1937. While this portrait has been assessed as “oil-on-canvas,” Peale may have used an encaustic (wax-based) medium when the APS requested the commission in 1830. |
Label |
While calculating latitude was a relatively simple process for explorers in the early 19th century, establishing longitudinal coordinates remained difficult without highly accurate timekeeping equipment, which was hard to maintain in the field. Robert Patterson is remembered for developing a method to calculate these elusive longitudinal coordinates through lunar observation. He shared this discovery with Meriwether Lewis, allowing Lewis and William Clark to accurately track their routes on their famous 1804–06 westward expedition. Patterson had significant ties to the APS, and was elected president in 1818. In addition to mathematics and physics, he was interested in many aspects of the physical and natural sciences. He was also a member of the original Board of Visitors (or trustees) of Charles Willson Peale’s Philadelphia Museum. Peale considered Patterson’s donation of a preserved paddlefish to be the founding gift of the museum's collections. |
Medium |
Oil on canvas |
Dimensions |
H-37.5 W-32.75 inches |
Dimension Details |
Framed |
Credit line |
American Philosophical Society |
Search Terms |
19th century nineteenth century painting scientist mathematics navigation astronomy Peale Museum APS President |