Permission to reproduce material from Athenaeum collections must be granted in writing and is at the discretion of The Athenaeum staff. All permission is granted on a per-use basis. Images may not be altered (aside from cropping) without special permission. The user of supplied reproductions assumes all responsibilities for citing sources properly, and using images in conformity with existing copyright laws, and may be required to supply The Athenaeum with a copy of any publication or project in which the images appear. The Athenaeum reserves the right to refuse to reproduce any item in its collections.
For information on ordering reproductions of Athenaeum drawings, please see http://www.philaathenaeum.org/rights.html.
Asbestos "Century" Shingles, J. J. Herlihy Residence
Assemblee National, Abandon de tous le Privileger
"The 1774 Patent for the ground for the Gaol, Work House, and House of Correction in Walnut Street. The Athenaeum was erected upon the site of the Walnut Street Prison."
Athenaeum of Philadelphia Bicentennial Banner
This is one of the banners that hung from lamp posts around Washington Square during the Athenaeum's Bicentennial year. This particular banner hung on the NE Corner of 6th and St. James Sts.
Glass transom window from the front entrance to the Athenaeum of Philadelphia: ATHENAEUM 219 Lettering is formed by reverse glass gold leaf gilding. The exact age of this window and the date of its removal are unknown; however, a 1923 photograph in the collections of the Athenaeum clearly shows the transom window in place over the front door.
Au Palais de Schoenbaunn Mairesde Paris recoivent les Drapeaux pris a Austerlitz
Aunt Emma Camden (Mrs. Robert Camden) and dog
Aunt Emma Camden and others, standing in front of automobile
B Excellent Linen Writing Tablet (illustrated cover)
B Live Wire Writing Tablet (illustrated cover)
B Title (preliminary sketch for a writing tablet cover)
"The following 8 pictures are from a group of negatives purchased by James N. Stone from a professional photographer with the intention of cleaning and using the plates again. These were preserved because they were for the most part celebrities but I do not now know who they are. JSS"
Baby lying in a basket on a weighing scale
Bald man poring over a book/Man sitting at dining table, smiling
Permission to reproduce material from Athenaeum collections must be granted in writing and is at the discretion of The Athenaeum staff. All permission is granted on a per-use basis. Images may not be altered (aside from cropping) without special permission. The user of supplied reproductions assumes all responsibilities for citing sources properly, and using images in conformity with existing copyright laws, and may be required to supply The Athenaeum with a copy of any publication or project in which the images appear. The Athenaeum reserves the right to refuse to reproduce any item in its collections. For information on ordering reproductions of Athenaeum drawings, please see http://www.philaathenaeum.org/rights.html.
Bamboo Bond: A Table of Fine Writing Paper (illustrated cover)
Banquet given to Merchants and travelers, at Windsor Hotel
Barnum's Museum, Corner of Seventh and Chesnut [Chestnut] Streets...
U.S. Job Printing Office, Ledger Building
Baron Bond Writing Tablet (illustrated cover)
Paul Beck, Jr. (1760-1844), was a distinguished Philadelphia merchant and philanthropist. Appointed to the post of Port Warden, Beck helped to improved the city's shipping facilities and was instrumental in building a canal to connect the Delaware and Chesapeake Bays. Among the many charitable institutions served by Beck was the Ludwick Institute, founded in 1801 as a free school for poor children. For many years its vice president, Beck bequeathed to it a property at 6th and Catharine Streets. In 1859 the Institute removed to that site (which became known as the Beck School House) and soon after it commissioned this portrait.
Executed by Thomas Sully (1783-1872) in 1860, this portrait was copied from an earlier one he had painted in 1813. An Athenaeum shareholder from 1818 to 1822, Sully was Philadelphia's leading portraitist. His canvases show a fine use of colors and textures, as well as an attention to detail. In this example he has included a biographical accessory, the gold snuff box given to Beck in 1812 by Major William Jackson (1759-1828), once personal secretary to George Washington.
The Ludwick Institute has long met at the Athenaeum and a majority of its managers are usually also directors of the Athenaeum.
Postcard to Miss Maggie Hamshire from Stuart
Plaster portrait bust of Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) by Jean Antoine Houdon, after an original from 1778. Benjamin Franklin, American Founding Father, writer, printer, postmaster, scientist, inventor, statesman, and diplomat, known for his wit and humor, is depicted here with shoulder-length hair and a plain suit coat, buttoned vest and simple cravat. French sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon was well known for portrait busts of public figures of the late 18th century. Houdon sculpted Benjamin Franklin’s likeness during Franklin’s tenure as American minister to France from 1776 to 1785. While only two marble versions of the bust are known to exist (one at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the other at the Metropolitan Museum of Art), Houdon also produced plaster versions such as this one in response to the public’s fascination with the popular American statesman.
Jean Antoine Houdon, after an original from 1778
Benjamin Franklin Hotel, The Franklin Room
Benjamin Franklin Memorial and the Franklin Institute
Benjamin Franklin Parkway from PSFS Building