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Oil on panel. 121.6 x 98.11 cm • 47 7/8 x 38 5/8 in. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA.
Oil on panel. 121.6 x 98.11 cm • 47 7/8 x 38 5/8 in. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA.
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.