''Declaration of Independence'' is a oil-on-canvas painting by the American artist

John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756 – November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolut ...

depicting the presentation of the

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. It was based on a much smaller version of the same scene, presently held by the Yale University Art Gallery. Trumbull painted many of the figures in the picture from life, and visited

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence, Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States were debated and adopted by the Founding Fathers of ...

to depict the chamber where the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

met. The oil-on-canvas work was commissioned in 1817, purchased in 1819, and placed in the United States Capitol rotunda in 1826. The painting is sometimes incorrectly described as depicting the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The painting shows the five-man drafting committee presenting their draft of the Declaration to the Congress, an event that took place on June 28, 1776, and not its signing, which took place mainly on August 2. The painting shows 42 of the 56 signers of the Declaration; Trumbull originally intended to include all 56 signers but was unable to obtain likenesses for all of them. He also depicted several participants in the debate who did not sign the document, including John Dickinson, who declined to sign. Trumbull had no portrait of Benjamin Harrison V to work with, but his son Benjamin Harrison VI was said to resemble his father, so Trumbull painted him instead. Similarly, Trumbull painted Rufus Hopkins, who resembled his father Stephen Hopkins, for whom no portrait was available. As the Declaration was debated and signed over a period of time when membership in Congress changed, the men featured in the painting never were in the same room at the same time.

Key to historical figures depicted in the painting

File:Declaration of Independence (1819), by John Trumbull.jpg, center, upright=3, Trumbull's ''Declaration of Independence'' desc bottom-right rect 4 1044 38 1130 George Wythe rect 38 1026 86 1119 William Whipple rect 93 1046 139 1133 Josiah Bartlett rect 147 1055 197 1133 Thomas Lynch Jr. rect 215 1037 293 1138 Benjamin Harrison rect 424 1049 491 1140

Richard Henry Lee Richard Henry Lee (January 20, 1732June 19, 1794) was an American statesman and Founding Father from Virginia, best known for the June 1776 Lee Resolution, the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence fr ...

rect 492 1051 533 1139 Samuel Adams rect 537 1055 582 1140 George Clinton rect 287 856 356 940 William Paca rect 366 855 417 948 Samuel Chase rect 456 886 503 960

Lewis Morris Lewis Morris (April 8, 1726 – January 22, 1798) was an American Founding Father, landowner, and developer from Morrisania, New York, presently part of Bronx County. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Conti ...

rect 506 913 549 987 William Floyd rect 575 958 619 1015 Arthur Middleton rect 601 1053 638 1108 Thomas Heyward Jr. rect 640 1069 689 1125 Charles Carroll rect 700 1076 734 1126 George Walton rect 741 1086 787 1144 Robert Morris rect 794 1071 824 1125 Thomas Willing rect 838 1086 881 1147 Benjamin Rush rect 902 1092 942 1153 Elbridge Gerry rect 946 1087 981 1149 Robert Treat Paine rect 987 1095 1019 1151 Abraham Clark rect 816 962 850 1010 Stephen Hopkins rect 855 966 889 1019

William Ellery William Ellery (December 22, 1727 – February 15, 1820) was a Founding Father of the United States, one of the 56 signers of the United States Declaration of Independence, and a signer of the Articles of Confederation as a representative of Rho ...

rect 894 965 928 1015 George Clymer rect 1064 1099 1106 1155 William Hooper rect 1114 1098 1153 1150 Joseph Hewes rect 1203 1093 1247 1148 James Wilson rect 1256 1104 1293 1153 Francis Hopkinson rect 1427 858 1510 955

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

rect 1519 806 1590 911 Roger Sherman rect 1592 833 1652 928 Robert R. Livingston rect 1719 784 1803 886

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

rect 1883 850 1956 945

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...

rect 2095 1059 2138 1116 Richard Stockton rect 2150 1067 2187 1121 Francis Lewis rect 2192 1059 2232 1114 John Witherspoon rect 2252 1060 2292 1114 Samuel Huntington rect 2267 953 2308 1007 William Williams rect 2312 944 2355 999 Oliver Wolcott rect 2408 773 2484 875

Charles Thomson Charles Thomson (November 29, 1729 – August 16, 1824) was an Irish-born Founding Father of the United States and secretary of the Continental Congress (1774–1789) throughout its existence. As secretary, Thomson prepared the Journals of the ...

rect 2444 950 2532 1065

John Hancock John Hancock ( – October 8, 1793) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father, merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot of the American Revolution. He was the longest-serving Presi ...

rect 2659 848 2717 938 George Read rect 2719 843 2759 925 John Dickinson rect 2759 852 2814 945 Edward Rutledge rect 2914 1021 2963 1094 Thomas McKean rect 2964 1016 3644 1696 Philip Livingston rect 1 1 3000 1970 KeyTrumbullsDeclarationofIndependence1

The key to the 47 figures in the painting follows the numbering used by the U.S. government publication "Art of the Capitol" (in the illustration of the key shown in this section) but provides a different (hopefully clearer) description of which figure is where in the painting, so numbers are not entirely in order. Key to figures (in each group, listed from left to right): Four men seated on the far left: *1. George Wythe *2. William Whipple *3. Josiah Bartlett *5. Thomas Lynch Jr. Seated at the table on the left: *4. Benjamin Harrison Seated together to the right of Harrison and in front of the standing figures: *6.

*7. Samuel Adams *8. George Clinton Five figures standing together on the left: *9. William Paca *10. Samuel Chase *11.

*12. William Floyd *13. Arthur Middleton Three seated figures in the back between the two sets of standing figures: *14. Thomas Heyward Jr. *15. Charles Carroll *16. George Walton Set of three figures standing together in the back: *23. Stephen Hopkins (wearing a hat) *24.

*25. George Clymer Ten figures seated: *17. Robert Morris (first on the left at the table) *18. Thomas Willing *19. Benjamin Rush *20. Elbridge Gerry *21. Robert Treat Paine *22. Abraham Clark *26. William Hooper *27. Joseph Hewes *28. James Wilson *29. Francis Hopkinson Five figures standing in front (the Committee of Five): *30.

*31. Roger Sherman *32. Robert R. Livingston *33.

*34.

Four background figures seated together near the right corner of the room: *35. Richard Stockton *36. Francis Lewis *37. John Witherspoon *38. Samuel Huntington Two figures standing in the right corner of the room: *39. William Williams *40. Oliver Wolcott Two foreground figures at the central table: *42.

(standing) *41.

(seated) Three figures standing at right: *43. George Read *44. John Dickinson *45. Edward Rutledge Two figures seated at far right: *46. Thomas McKean *47. Philip Livingston (Note: - Not a signer of the final Declaration of Independence but depicted in painting. Although

was one of two members listed by name in the earlier Dunlap Broadside as having attested to the Declaration, and many historians believe he had signed the original document that was lost. Clinton was not present at the signing of the Declaration.)

Unpainted signers

There were 14 signers of the Declaration who did not appear in the painting: * Matthew Thornton (

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

) * John Hart (

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

) * John Morton (

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

) * James Smith (

) * George Taylor (

) * George Ross (

) * Caesar Rodney (

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

) * Thomas Stone (

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

) * Thomas Nelson, Jr. (

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

) * Francis Lightfoot Lee (

) * Carter Braxton (

) * John Penn (

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

) * Button Gwinnett (

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

) * Lyman Hall (

)

On U.S. currency and postage stamps

Trumbull's ''Declaration of Independence'' signing scene painting has been depicted several times on United States

currency A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a ''system of money'' in common use within a specific envi ...

and postage stamps. It was first used on the reverse side of the $100 National Bank Note that was issued in 1863. The depiction was

engraved Engraving is the practice of incising a design on a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an inta ...

by Frederick Girsch of the American Bank Note Company. The same steel engraving was used on the 24¢ stamp issued six years later as part of the 1869 pictorial series of definitive U.S. postage stamps. Trumbull's painting is presently depicted on the reverse of the two-dollar bill. Featured in it are 40 of the 47 figures from Trumbull's painting. Cut out from the scene are: the farthest four figures on the left—George Wythe, William Whipple, Josiah Bartlett, and Thomas Lynch, Jr.; the farthest two figures on the right—Thomas McKean and Philip Livingston; and one of three figures seated in the left rear—George Walton. Additionally, two unrecognized figures were added: one in between Samuel Chase and Lewis Morris and another between James Wilson and Francis Hopkinson, bringing the total number of figures shown in this presentation scene to 42.

Other versions

Trumbull painted a smaller version (only ) entitled ''The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776'' (1786–1820) that is now on view at the Yale University Art Gallery in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

Legacy and interpretations

In 2017, the company Ancestry.com restaged the painting with the 29 living descendants of the men depicted in Trumbull's painting as part of an advertising campaign called “Declaration Descendants". The campaign included two short films and ran on digital and social media platforms. Shannon Lanier, a descendant of

, said: “When you see the new picture, the new image, it’s a picture of diverse people. Black, white, Hispanic, Native American—a little bit of everything—Asian, and that’s more of a representation of this country.” In the 2008 HBO miniseries ''

'', in one of the final scenes of the series, the painter John Trumbull is showing his massive mural to an elderly John Adams for his approval. While staring at the painting Adams mentions, "They're all dead ... except me and Jefferson." He then expresses to Trumbull his disapproval of the work. This leads to a brief argument between the men about the difference between artistic license and historical accuracy. The scene itself is entirely fictional, but serves as a warning towards the fictionalization of the past itself with Adams stating "It is very bad history".HBO's Miniseries "John Adams" (2008). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DT0qNAYJQWU Although

appears to be stepping on

' shoe in the painting, which many thought symbolized their relationship as friendly rivals, upon closer examination it can be seen that their feet are merely close together. This part of the image was correctly depicted on the two-dollar bill version. On the farthest wall hangs a display of

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

s, drum, and regimental colours captured from British regiments. This is not depicted in all versions, most notably the one seen on the two-dollar bill.

References

External links

;Keys to the figures
Another key to the figures
;Other
Architect of the Capitol
Web page on the painting {{Authority control Paintings about the American Revolution Paintings by John Trumbull 1810s paintings United States Declaration of Independence Paintings in the United States Capitol Musical instruments in art Books in art Flags in art Cultural depictions of John Adams Cultural depictions of Benjamin Franklin Cultural depictions of Thomas Jefferson Cultural depictions of Samuel Adams George Clinton Elbridge Gerry United States Declaration of Independence in art