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# Sr ISAAC NEWTON

National Museum of American History

                    - Share IconShare Icon                       - 
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                      - Print
                      -     Object Details- Description
- In 1702, living in London and serving as Master of the Mint, Isaac Newton sat for Godfrey Kneller, the most famous and probably the most expensive portrait painter in London. For this portrait he wore a red banyan and a flowing wig.
- This is one of many engraved copies of that image. The text at the bottom reads “Sr ISAAC NEWTON” and “G. Kneller pinxt” and “Wm. Sharp sculpt” and “G. Kearsley, No 46 Fleet Street.” Newton here looks to his left (rather than to his right as in the Kneller portrait). A laurel branch appears at one side and an oil lamp at the other. Below are figures of a globe, a large lens, a refracting telescope, books, papers, geometrical diagrams, and a woman who probably represents Urania, the muse of astronomy.
- William Sharp (1749-1824) was an engraver in London. George Kearsley (fl. 1758-1791) was a publisher of books and prints. He was also responsible for  The Copper Plate Magazine , “a monthly treasure for admirers of the imitative arts.” Our engraving appeared in the 1778 edition of that work.
- Ref: Patricia Fara,  Newton. The Making of Genius  (New York, 2003).
- Milo Keynes, ed.,  The Iconography of Sir Isaac Newton to 1800  (Woodbridge, 2005), p. 56.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- 1778
- ID Number
- 1987.0076.01
- catalog number
- 1987.0076.01
- accession number
- 1987.0076
- Object Name
- print
- Physical Description
- paper (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 8 1/4 in x 6 3/4 in; 20.955 cm x 17.145 cm
- place made
- United Kingdom: England, London
- See more items in
- Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences
- Science & Mathematics
- Prints from the Physical Sciences Collection
- National Museum of American History
- Record ID
- nmah_1452104
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b3-1c33-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
  CC0Creative Commons - No Rights Reserved iconUsage Conditions Apply>download icon>          There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .        International media Interoperability FrameworkIIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.View manifestView in Mirador ViewerExpand to view image×                PreviousNext             Footer logo      
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