George Washington

This heroic sculpture depicts George Washington as a Roman emperor, a popular European tradition for representing political and military leaders. The portrait is based on a likeness modeled in Philadelphia in 1791 or 1792 by Italian sculptor Giuseppe Ceracchi, who came to the United States seeking the commission for a congressional monument to Washington (which was never made). A plaster cast of his life portrait of Washington was acquired in 1809 by Thomas Appleton, American consul in Livorno (Leghorn), Italy. A decade later, Italian sculptor Massimiliano Ravenna made several marble copies of the portrait for sale in the United States.