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Artist
Cephas Thompson, 1 Jul 1775 - 6 Nov 1856
Former attribution
John Vanderlyn, 15 Oct 1775 - 23 Sep 1852
Sitter
William Wirt, 8 Nov 1772 - 18 Feb 1834
Date
c. 1809-10
Type
Painting
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
Frame: 107 x 90.2 x 8.9cm (42 1/8 x 35 1/2 x 3 1/2")
Topic
William Wirt: Male
William Wirt: Law and Crime\Lawyer
William Wirt: Politics and Government\Cabinet member\US Attorney General
William Wirt: Politics and Government\State Legislator\Virginia
William Wirt: Literature\Writer
William Wirt: Politics and Government\Presidential candidate
Portrait
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Object number
NPG.89.11
Exhibition Label
Born Bladensburg, Maryland
William Wirt was a lawyer of uncommon ability, who participated in many of the most important Supreme Court cases of his day. As the longest serving United States attorney general to date (1817–29), having served under Presidents James Monroe and John Quincy Adams, he transformed this cabinet position into one of sizable influence.
Wirt had recently completed a term in the Virginia House of Delegates when he and his wife, Elizabeth Wirt, sat for portraits by self-taught Massachusetts artist Cephas Thompson. At the time, Thompson was at the height of his career as an itinerant artist, who traveled in the South. Thompson portrayed Wirt in a draped toga, alluding to ancient Roman sculptures of orators. This may be a reference to Wirt’s skilled verbal arguments as the lead prosecutor in former Vice President Aaron Burr’s 1807 trial for treason in Richmond, Virginia.
Provenance
A descendant of sitter’s wife Elizabeth Washington Wirt; (C.G. Sloan & Co., North Bethesda Md., 31 March - 2 April 1989, lot 2524) [as attributed to Vanderlyn]; purchased NPG
According to Sloan’s, owner was a Virginia descendant of Elizabeth Washington Wirt.
