[Washington, George] Mount Vernon, by Victor de Grailly. Oil on canvas of Mount Vernon, 15½ x 20½". Framed to 19 x 24". Couples stroll on the lawn of Mount Vernon and observe the sailboats on the Potomac River. The men wear top hats and one of them wears a medal around his neck on a long ribbon; a young boy rolls a hoop, and a young woman plays with a dog. A maid in uniform can be seen at the door speaking to a gentleman on the veranda.
Victor de Grailly (1804-1889) was a French landscape painter whose most popular paintings were American scenes from steel engravings by William Henry Bartlett (1809-1854). In 1836, George Virtue, a London publisher, commissioned Bartlett to record American landmarks, such as Niagara Falls and the Hudson River Valley; in 1851, he made "Washington's House Mount Vernon." De Grailly's paintings showed American scenes through a romanticized European prism.
Estimated Value $8,000 - 10,000.
The Claude Harkins Collection of Washingtonia