The American Star (George Washington)

Frederick Kemmelmeyer

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This picture glorifies Washington's achievements as a soldier, statesman, and Freemason by surrounding him with weapons, symbols of nationhood, and a Masonic shield. His association with the star has numerous connotations, including his being a source of guidance or a light in the darkness.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art