Portrait of Lexington

Thomas J. Scott, Portrait of Lexington, ca. 1857, oil on canvas mounted on fiberboard, sight 24 ¹⁄₈ x 34 ³⁄₈ in. (61.3 x 87.4 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection, 1980.137.93

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Artwork Details

Title: Portrait of Lexington
Artist: Thomas J. Scott
Date: ca. 1857
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
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Luce Foundation Center
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3rd Floor
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15B
Dimensions: sight 24 ¹⁄₈ x 34 ³⁄₈ in. (61.3 x 87.4 cm.)
Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection
Mediums: oil
Mediums Description: oil on canvas mounted on fiberboard
Classifications: Painting
Subjects: Animal — portrait — Lexington
Animal — horse
Object Number: 1980.137.93
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1980.137.93

Artwork Description

The famous racehorse Lexington was born in Kentucky in 1850 and went on to sire more winning horses than any other American thoroughbred before or since. Thomas J. Scott painted this image while living in Kentucky in the 1850s, when Lexington was at his peak. In an article for Turf, Field and Farm, Scott described the stallion's impressive stature: "Lexington was without a peer . . . fifteen hands three inches in height, of very extreme width from the point of one shoulder to the other, broad shoulder blades . . . Lexington came as near to being all horse and no ounce of surplus as one could imagine" (Hervey, Racing in America, 1944). The rich tones in this image emphasize the thoroughbred's glossy coat and lean, prize-winning form.