The Passage of the Delaware

The Passage of the Delaware
ArtistThomas Sully
Year1819
MediumOil-on-canvas
Dimensions372.1 cm x 525.7 cm (146.5″x207″)
LocationMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston
The Passage of the Delaware was originally displayed in the Boston Museum, here shown on the far wall.

The Passage of the Delaware is a large, Neoclassical 1819 oil-on-canvas painting by Thomas Sully.[1] With attention to historical accuracy, the painting depicts George Washington on horseback observing the troops of the American Revolutionary Army in the process of crossing the Delaware River prior to the surprise attack on Hessian troops on the night of December 25 and 26, 1776, at the Battle of Trenton. The image is intended to capture the moment prior to George Washington dismounting his horse and joining his army in crossing the Delaware River.[2]

The painting was initially commissioned to be displayed in the North Carolina Capitol but with dimensions of 146.5″ (372.1 cm) high and 207″ (525.7 cm) wide, the work was too large to be displayed in the building so the contract was mutually terminated. The Passage of the Delaware was eventually displayed in the Boston Museum. The museum closed in 1903, and the painting was gifted to the Museum of Fine Arts. It is exhibited in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.[3]

A photographic portrait of Thomas Sully.

The Passage of the Delaware was a forerunner of Emanuel Leutze's 1851 painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware.

  1. ^ Davis, Elliot Bostwick (2016). Thomas Sully: George Washington and the Passage of the Delaware (First ed.). Boston. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-87846-833-1. OCLC 945950666.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Museum of Fine Arts, Boston