Abraham Lincoln Hesler Portrait
Photograph by George Ayres after the 1860 negative by Alexander Hesler
American, Late 19th century - Frame: 19⅞ x 17 inches; sight: 15⅝ x 12¾ inches
 
A large-format photographic portrait of Abraham Lincoln, printed by George Ayres after the celebrated 1860 negative by Alexander Hesler of Chicago. Taken in June 1860, shortly after his nomination for the presidency, Hesler’s photographs produced some of the most enduring and widely disseminated likenesses of the future president, helping to shape Lincoln’s public image at a pivotal moment in his rise to national leadership.
 
Lincoln himself reportedly remarked that “Hesler’s pictures are the best likenesses of me,” a statement that underscores the importance of this sitting within the visual record of his life. The original negatives were reproduced extensively during the Civil War and beyond, serving as the basis for engravings, cartes-de-visite, and later enlargements such as the present example. Printed at a scale intended for display rather than personal exchange, the photograph translates the immediacy of the studio portrait into a more monumental format, emphasizing Lincoln’s distinctive features while preserving the quiet restraint that defines the image.
 
Condition: Very fine, with even toning and light wear consistent with age.