Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
60.S.1 |
Object Name |
Bas-Relief |
Title |
Bas-Relief with Portrait of Benjamin Franklin |
Artist |
Gosset, Isaac |
Date |
1766 |
Description |
Bas-relief, profile portrait in wax, facing the subject's right. He has a round, fleshy face with pursed lips and bags under his eyes. He wears a long, tightly curled, modified bob wig, a waistcoat, neckcloth, and an uncollared coat. Unsigned and undated. |
Label |
Isaac Gossett was renowned for his skill in the delicate art of wax carving, which imitated expensive ivory. He probably carved this piece, and at least four other versions, while Benjamin Franklin was posing for a large oil portrait by David Martin in England. Though this may be an unfamiliar image of Franklin now, it was seen widely at the time, especially after the English firm Wedgwood reproduced it as a ceramic medallion. |
Medium |
Beeswax |
Dimensions |
H-6.5 W-5.25 D-1.5 inches |
Dimension Details |
Framed |
Credit line |
American Philosophical Society. Gift of Frances Margaret Bradford, 1960. |
Search Terms |
18th century eighteenth century sculpture Founding Father portrait profile |