Allegories of Wisdom and Truth Leading the Infant Arts to America
This design for an emblematic print has a section inserted at center, demonstrating that Barralet reworked the image. Allegorical figures that symbolize Wisdom (armored with helmet and spear), and Truth (an angel with flames on his forehead), introduce putti carrying a brush and palette, architectural design, and sculpture, to America (a woman holding a cap of Liberty. The latter is attended by an eagle perched on an emblematic shield, a cornucopia, beehive, and goods piled near a sailing ship).
Artwork Details
- Title: Allegories of Wisdom and Truth Leading the Infant Arts to America
- Artist: John James Barralet (Irish, Dublin ca. 1747–1815 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
- Date: after 1796
- Medium: Pen and ink, brush and wash
- Dimensions: sheet: 7 9/16 x 9 7/16 in. (19.2 x 24 cm)
- Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Gift of Ferdinand H. Davis, 1961
- Object Number: 61.672
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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