Gilbert Stuart. Portrait of George Washington, ca.1810.

Known as the "Allentown" anthenaeum portrait of George Washington, which was painted by Stuart from life, oil on canvas, 29 x 24 in. The gilded frame on this famous Gilbert Stuart portrait was fashioned specifically for the painting it surrounds with ornaments of flags, stars, shields and an eagle.

Provenance: Samuel D. Frank, Reading and later Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; William Buchler, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Ca. 1828; W.J. Fisher, Washington, D.C.; Ralph King, Cleveland, Ohio, acquired from the above, 1902; descended in the family until 1980; Vose Galleries, Boston, acquired from the above; Sotheby's, Sale 6633, December 1, 1994; Richard Manoogian, Epic Fine Arts, acquired from above; January. 1996.

Literature: George C. Mason, The Life and Works of Gilbert Stuart, New York, 1879, p. 109; Mantle Fielding, Gilbert Stuart's Portraits of George Washington, Philadelphia, 1923, no. 97; Lawrence Park, Gilbert Stuart: An Illustrated Descriptive List of His Works, vol. II, New York, 1926, no. 94, p. 888; John Hill Morgan and Mantle Fielding, The Life Portraits of Washington and Their Replicas, Philadelphia. 1931, no. 97, p. 306; Gustavus A. Eisen, Portraits of Washington, New York, 1932, p. 187.