By Amy Van Dyke, Curator of Art and Traveling Exhibitions
From the Vault: Art About America
In honor of America’s 250th anniversary, Museum of the Bible has brought out treasures from our collection that have never been exhibited before. Each work of art reflects a piece of America’s history and its deep connection to the Bible. From pilgrims to pastors to presidents, this exhibition offers a glimpse into the connection between Scripture and artistic practice in the early colonies, and how Puritan beliefs helped define an infant nation’s understanding of the purpose of art.
Art of the Colonies
For early settlers, survival and faith were primary. Fine art was neither useful nor morally acceptable, since it was considered indulgent to create art for the sake of aesthetics or contemplation rather than function. Portraiture, however, was one of the few accepted forms of art. It was believed that a portrait was safe from the dangers of imagination since it was a documentary process, and portraits of clergy were the most common because they represented a life devoted to God and the Bible.
Reverend John Woodbridge
Unknown Artist (American, 17th century)
Oil on canvas
1670
ART.001384
From the Dr. and Mrs. R. Ted Steinbock Collection at Museum of the Bible
This early American portrait is one of only 23 known from this period. The execution appears primitive, even utilizing a common pine frame. This was in part to avoid the appearance of opulence, but also because American-born artists were not regularly exposed to fine art and did not have access to apprenticeships in the colonies.
Clergymen held positions of high regard in the community. Not only did they lead their flock in the church, but also in the public square. Christian duty went hand-in-hand with civic duty. Thus, many ministers were deeply involved with matters of governance in the early colonies. Reverend Cotton Mather (pictured below) is one such minister who wrote extensively on theology, history, and science, and was also a regular contributor to political discourse, famously clashing with Joseph Dudley, the governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay.
Reverend Cotton Mather
Peter Pelham (British/American, 1695–1751)
Engraved mezzotint
1728
ART.001402
From the Dr. and Mrs. R. Ted Steinbock Collection at Museum of the Bible
This print is the first mezzotint portrait made in America. Artist Peter Pelham arrived in the colonies in 1717 and asked Cotton Mather to sit for him. Mezzotint is an intaglio printmaking technique that produces tonal gradients and a soft, velvety effect, as opposed to a sharp line etching.
Art of the Revolution
During the Revolutionary era, printed materials became a powerful force in shaping public thought and uniting the colonies. Printed sermons, speeches, and images helped spread ideas that inspired resistance and strengthened communal identity. Biblical language and themes often informed these messages, reinforcing moral conviction and a sense of shared purpose.
The First Prayer in Congress
Painting by Tompkins Harrison Matteson (American, 1813–1884)
Engraving by Henry S. Sadd
Printed by Neale & Pate, New York
Engraving
1848
ART.001120
This print depicts Reverend Jacob Duché leading members of Congress in the opening prayer of the First Continental Congress on September 7, 1774. John Adams, in a letter to his wife, Abigail, noted the profound effect of the prayer and the reading of Psalm 35 on the attendees, believing it to have been divinely orchestrated.
Art of the Nation
As the nation developed, art increasingly served to memorialize its leaders, most notably George Washington. His portraits, first painted by Charles Wilson Peale, conveyed his countenance in a stoic, unpretentious manner, consistent with the Puritan traditions of a moral (Christian), measured life. Over time, however, these images became much more idealized, depicting Washington in symbolic, classical forms that conveyed themes of strength, sacrifice, and national purpose.
This shift reflects a broader cultural development: the use of visual language to express shared values and collective identity. Together, these works reveal how art helped shape not only memory, but the meaning of the American story.
George Washington (after Gilbert Stuart’s Athenaeum Washington of 1797)
Attributed to Jane Stuart (American, 1812–1888)
Oil on canvas
Mid-1800s
ART.001212
From the Dr. and Mrs. R. Ted Steinbock Collection at Museum of the Bible
Gilbert Stuart’s portraits of Washington resulted in three distinctive types: the “Vaughan” portrait, the “Lansdowne” portrait (pictured below), and the “Athenaeum” portrait (pictured here). Stuart and his daughter Jane painted dozens of copies of this likeness, resulting in approximately 75 surviving so-called “Athenaeum-type” portraits of Washington. The original, painted three years before his death, was commissioned by Martha Washington and used as the basis for the image on the one-dollar bill.
George Washington (after Gilbert Stuart’s Lansdowne Portrait of 1797)
Painting by Gilbert Stuart (American, 1755–1828)
Engraving by James Heath (British, 1757–1834)
1800
ART.001311.2
From the Dr. and Mrs. R. Ted Steinbock Collection at Museum of the Bible
As Washington sat for Stuart, he was struggling with a disagreeing cabinet and elements of the press that depicted him as a despotic monarch. Stuart chose to counter that view by depicting Washington as an aristocratic leader surrounded by symbolic references to peace, prosperity, and the Roman Republic. This portrayal helped to further the public’s opinion of Washington as a new Cincinnatus, the Roman citizen soldier who laid down his arms after establishing peace.
From the Vault: Art About America is open May 1–October 11, 2026, and features many more paintings and portraits from early America. Come celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with us as we look at how the Bible has influenced art and how art has influenced ideas that served the patriotic spirit of a young America.
Published May 28, 2026
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