How does Archbishop William Henry Elder elucidate its abstract?
Archbishop William Henry Elder is a 1903 oil portrait by  the American artist Thomas Eakins depicting the Archbishop of Cincinnati William Henry Elder, one of a series of portraits of Catholic clergy Eakins undertook late in his career. In this psychologically probing portrait, Eakins depicts the stoic Elder, frail but still imposing at 84, confronting his own mortality.
The painting, which Eakins considered "one of my best", was awarded the Temple Gold Medal by the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Eakins famously had the medal melted down out of spite, bitter over his forced resignation from the Academy 18 years beforehand.
It is currently in the collection of the Cincinnati Art Museum, which purchased it in 1978.
Thomas Eakins Archbishop of Cincinnati Temple Gold Medal Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Cincinnati Art Museum oil Catholic portrait William Henry Elder Cincinnati