Visit of the Prince of Wales, President Buchanan, and Dignitaries to the Tomb of Washington at Mount Vernon, October 1860

Thomas P. Rossiter, Visit of the Prince of Wales, President Buchanan, and Dignitaries to the Tomb of Washington at Mount Vernon, October 1860, 1861, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Harriet Lane Johnston, 1906.9.18
Copied Thomas P. Rossiter, Visit of the Prince of Wales, President Buchanan, and Dignitaries to the Tomb of Washington at Mount Vernon, October 1860, 1861, oil on canvas, 27 1⁄4 x 54 3⁄8 in. (69.3 x 138.1 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Harriet Lane Johnston, 1906.9.18
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Visit of the Prince of Wales, President Buchanan, and Dignitaries to the Tomb of Washington at Mount Vernon, October 1860
Artist
Date
1861
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
27 1⁄4 x 54 3⁄8 in. (69.3 x 138.1 cm.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Harriet Lane Johnston
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure group
  • History — United States
  • Occupation — political — president
  • Ceremony — civic — political
  • Monument — tomb — Washington
  • Portrait male — Buchanan, James
Object Number
1906.9.18
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1906.9.18

Artwork Description

In 1860, the nineteen-year-old Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) visited the tomb of the man who had led the Continental Army to victory over the forces of Great Britain in the American Revolution. Demonstrating the renewed harmony between the two nations, President James Buchanan stands beside the heir to the British throne as he pays his respects at this American shrine. The clouds above the assembled crowd of dignitaries take the form of George Washington's profile.