Focus on this artwork and explain the abstract.
The Passage of the Delaware is a large, Neoclassical 1819 oil-on-canvas painting by Thomas Sully. 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 December 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.
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.The Passage of the Delaware was a forerunner of Emanuel Leutze's 1851 painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware.
Boston oil-on-canvas Battle of Trenton Neoclassical North Carolina Capitol George Washington American Revolutionary Army Delaware River Emanuel Leutze Boston Museum North Carolina Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Hessian troops American Revolution Washington Crossing the Delaware Thomas Sully