Interior of the House of Representatives, Washington

Object Details

William Goodacre, a printmaker active in New York during the 1830s, made this complex image. Though the old House Chamber is the focus of the print, allegorical and historical imagery surrounds this most democratic of spaces. Above the Chamber scene, an eagle holds a laurel wreath amidst flags, fasces, and swords, arrayed like military trophies. On either side of the central image are allegorical figures of Justice—blindfolded and holding a scale—and Liberty, holding a liberty cap on a staff. Below Justice, a crowd cheers before Federal Hall in New York, as George Washington is proclaimed President. Opposite, Washington’s embarks at Elizabethport, New Jersey, part of his journey to his New York inauguration.