Portrait of Major Simeon Theus
Image ID: ART057
Portrait of Major Simeon Theus
oil painting unsigned and undated
Samuel Finley Breeze Morse
Samuel F.B. Morse (1791-1872), eminent 19th century painter, sculptor, and inventor was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, and worked in Charleston, South Carolina. Morse studied under Benjamin West in London and spent many years as a portrait painter in America. His artistic yearnings took him to France, but his practical side brought him back home to invent such extraordinary things as the Morse Code, essential to the telegraph, first patented in 1840. His best-known painting "Gallery of the Louvre," sold for $3.25 million; today, it is the cornerstone of the Daniel J. Terra Collection of the Musee Americain in Giverny, France.
The portrait of Major Simeon Theus originally was thought to be by Gilbert Stuart, when it was presented to the Library in 1943, under the will of art teacher Sally Perry Peck of Northampton (Smith Class of 1892), a descendant of Theus. However, Professor Oliver W. Larkin of Smith College, writing a biography of Morse in 1954, attributed the work to the subject of his research.
The initial live portrait was probably done by Morse in 1818 in Charlestown, South Carolina, where Theus, a major in the Revolutionary War, was retired. Morse also did a number of other portraits in Charlestown. Larkin believed that Morse, himself, later made several copies of the original Simeon Theus painting so that various members of the family could own a portrait of their illustrious ancestor. The Forbes portrait is one of these.
oil painting unsigned and undated
Samuel Finley Breeze Morse
Samuel F.B. Morse (1791-1872), eminent 19th century painter, sculptor, and inventor was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, and worked in Charleston, South Carolina. Morse studied under Benjamin West in London and spent many years as a portrait painter in America. His artistic yearnings took him to France, but his practical side brought him back home to invent such extraordinary things as the Morse Code, essential to the telegraph, first patented in 1840. His best-known painting "Gallery of the Louvre," sold for $3.25 million; today, it is the cornerstone of the Daniel J. Terra Collection of the Musee Americain in Giverny, France.
The portrait of Major Simeon Theus originally was thought to be by Gilbert Stuart, when it was presented to the Library in 1943, under the will of art teacher Sally Perry Peck of Northampton (Smith Class of 1892), a descendant of Theus. However, Professor Oliver W. Larkin of Smith College, writing a biography of Morse in 1954, attributed the work to the subject of his research.
The initial live portrait was probably done by Morse in 1818 in Charlestown, South Carolina, where Theus, a major in the Revolutionary War, was retired. Morse also did a number of other portraits in Charlestown. Larkin believed that Morse, himself, later made several copies of the original Simeon Theus painting so that various members of the family could own a portrait of their illustrious ancestor. The Forbes portrait is one of these.
Image Details
| Dublin Core | |
|---|---|
| Title |
Portrait of Major Simeon Theus
|
| Subject |
Samuel Finley Breeze Morse
Major Simeon Theus
Oil paintings
Portrait paintings
|
| Description |
Portrait of Major Simeon Theus
oil painting unsigned and undated Samuel Finley Breeze Morse Samuel F.B. Morse (1791-1872), eminent 19th century painter, sculptor, and inventor was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, and worked in Charleston, South Carolina. Morse studied under Benjamin West in London and spent many years as a portrait painter in America. His artistic yearnings took him to France, but his practical side brought him back home to invent such extraordinary things as the Morse Code, essential to the telegraph, first patented in 1840. His best-known painting "Gallery of the Louvre," sold for $3.25 million; today, it is the cornerstone of the Daniel J. Terra Collection of the Musee Americain in Giverny, France. The portrait of Major Simeon Theus originally was thought to be by Gilbert Stuart, when it was presented to the Library in 1943, under the will of art teacher Sally Perry Peck of Northampton (Smith Class of 1892), a descendant of Theus. However, Professor Oliver W. Larkin of Smith College, writing a biography of Morse in 1954, attributed the work to the subject of his research. The initial live portrait was probably done by Morse in 1818 in Charlestown, South Carolina, where Theus, a major in the Revolutionary War, was retired. Morse also did a number of other portraits in Charlestown. Larkin believed that Morse, himself, later made several copies of the original Simeon Theus painting so that various members of the family could own a portrait of their illustrious ancestor. The Forbes portrait is one of these. |
| Creator |
Samuel Finley Breeze Morse
|
| Format |
Oil
|
| Identifier |
ART057
|
| Coverage |
Reading room
|
| Still Image Item Type Metadata | |
|---|---|
| Physical Dimensions |
29" x 24"
|
Citation
Samuel Finley Breeze Morse, “Portrait of Major Simeon Theus,” Forbes Library Images from the Archives (Legacy site: Pre-2022), accessed December 21, 2024, https://images.forbeslibrary.org/items/show/797.