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1960

  • We acquired this object.

2013

2018

2023

2024

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Drawing, Personification of America

This is a Drawing. It was created by Rosalba Carriera. It is dated before 1720 and we acquired it in 1960. Its medium is pastel on paper mounted on canvas. It is a part of the Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design department.

Personification of America is part of a popular 18th-century series of allegorical depictions of the Four Continents (Africa, America, Asia, and Europe) by Rosalba Carriera. These suites were so in demand in the 18th century that at least five sets by Carriera are thought to reside in museum collections today. Her version of “America” repeats the traditional clichés of partial nudity and feathered ornamentation, and adds to them interpretations of New World weaponry, notably spears and arrows.

This object was donated by Estate of James Hazen Hyde. It is credited Gift of the Estate of James Hazen Hyde.

Its dimensions are

43.5 x 34 cm (17 1/8 x 13 3/8 in.) Frame H x W x D: 57.2 × 48.3 × 5.1 cm (22 1/2 in. × 19 in. × 2 in.)

Cite this object as

Drawing, Personification of America; Rosalba Carriera (Italian, 1673–1757); Italy; pastel on paper mounted on canvas; 43.5 x 34 cm (17 1/8 x 13 3/8 in.) Frame H x W x D: 57.2 × 48.3 × 5.1 cm (22 1/2 in. × 19 in. × 2 in.); Gift of the Estate of James Hazen Hyde; 1960-1-7-d

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Rebeca Méndez Selects.

This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18429645/ |title=Drawing, Personification of America |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=17 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>