Oil on canvas; 93 x 58 1/2 in. (236.2 x 148.6 cm). Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA.
Called the first great painting in the history of the United States
(Paul Staiti, Of Arms and Artists), Washington’s portrait was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Assembly for the State House (now Independence Hall) in early 1779.
In a land where horsemanship was often men’s touchiest point of pride, Jefferson had to admit he never saw Washington’s like for grace and control in the saddle. A froniter runner and Indian wrestler — his friend George Mercer described his frame as padded with well-developed muscles
— Washington had by 1774 refined mere energy down to a grace of least movement, the higher athleticism of the dance. And he danced well.