(ABRAHAM LINCOLN) DT Wiest; artist and engraver In Memory of

Sale 2633 - Lot 111

Unsold

Estimate: $ 1,500 - $ 2,500

(ABRAHAM LINCOLN.) D.T. Wiest; artist and engraver. In Memory of Abraham Lincoln, the Reward of the Just. Lithograph, 27 1/4 x 21 inches; faint mat toning, tape repair to 2-inch closed tear, minor wear at corners. Philadelphia: William Smith, circa 1865

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Wiest copied this composition from a popular 1801 print, "Commemoration of Washington" by Barralet (see lot 167), making only two substantial changes: replacing Washington's head with Lincoln's, and changing the inscription on the tomb. Faith, Hope, and Charity welcome him into heaven. Other details might properly have been updated, but remained the same. Most notably, the shield in the lower left corner bears only the 15 stars of Washington's time, rather than the 35 stars of the union which Lincoln had worked so hard to restore. The badges of the Society of Cincinnati and the Freemasons hanging from the tomb were also far more appropriate for Washington than for Lincoln. "Others may have wondered about the mourning Indian; a freed black man would have been far more appropriate"--Holzer, et al., Lincoln Image, pages 198-203.