Sold: The Smallest Washington

The smallest known portrait of George Washington / engraved by the American Bank Note Company / c. 1820s

From the hand of an unknown American Bank Note Company engraver, this tiny image of George Washington surmounted by an eagle is documented as the first American President’s smallest-known portrait. Hand-etched on a copper plate for printing, the portrait was no doubt intended to demonstrate the skill of its talented creator. But the microscopic Washington also served an important purpose in the early Republic.

The American Bank Note Company was founded in 1795 by Robert Scot, the first engraver of the U.S. Mint, and its earliest products included paper currency for the nation’s thousands of state-chartered banks. Prior to 1861, the federal government did not issue paper money. Instead, over 1,500 private banks under state charters were permitted to print their own paper currency. In the first half of the nineteenth century, some 7,000 varieties of these state bank notes were put into circulation, and most of these were engraved by the American Bank Note Company.

Given the decentralization and resulting chaos of the nation’s early monetary system, this microchip of a Washington was perhaps designed as an anti-forgery security feature and also to insert subtle federal authority into each of the thousands of currency designs in the pockets of antebellum Americans. Two hundred years later, the American Bank Note Company has been rebranded as ABCorp, but still employs ever more subtle security features, offering contactless credit cards, mobile phone payment services, and financial security protections.

This portrait engraving of Washington was acquired from a private collection and appears to be exceedingly rare. I could not find another example or image of it in my research. The engraving appears to be listed in “The Engraved Portraits of Washington” by William Spon Baker, page 118, which identifies its origin and names it as the “smallest engraved Portrait of Washington” (out of well over 400 engravings catalogued). The engraving is both an important and curious piece of Americana, and would make a singular addition to a Washington collection. Handsomely framed in a period-appropriate lemon gold frame.

Measurements

Framed: 10.5 inches tall and 9 inches wide

Engraving itself: 1/2 inch tall and 1/3 wide

Condition

Excellent condition. Professionally framed with acid free archival mat.

Shipping

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