Benjamin Franklin

Henry Kirke Brown

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In 1852 Brown completed high-relief profile portraits of three American statesmen - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790). The Franklin medallion reflects Brown's signature naturalistic modeling of human form, evident in the receding hairline, incised pupils, and fleshy jowls. Likewise, his scrupulous attention to textural variation is reflected in the finely chased and stippled high collar, buttoned jacket, and long hair. This highly finished relief is a superlative example of early American bronze casting and was produced at the Ames Manufacturing Company in Chicopee, Massachusetts. The number of Franklin medallions cast by Ames is not documented; the Metropolitan's bronze is the only located example with a foundry mark. Brown's success with bronze casting inspired the next generation of American sculptors to opt more frequently for bronze instead of marble.

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