Abraham Lincoln — Portrait Print with Printed Signature
After Samuel M. Fassett, American, circa 1860
Frame: 12¾ x 9⅝ inches; sight: 10¾ x 7¾ inches
 
A scarce period portrait print of Abraham Lincoln, presenting the president-elect in a finely engraved bust-length likeness set within a delicate ornamental cartouche. Beneath the portrait appears the inscription “Yours truly A. Lincoln,” printed as part of the image.
 
The likeness derives from the well-known 1860 photographic portrait by Samuel M. Fassett, produced during Lincoln’s presidential campaign. Fassett’s image became one of the more widely circulated representations of Lincoln at this pivotal moment in American history, helping to shape the public image of the Republican candidate on the eve of the Civil War.
 
The composition proved especially influential in contemporary political material; campaign ribbons bearing this same portrait are known and have realized five-figure prices at auction, underscoring the desirability of the image among collectors of Lincolniana and Civil War–era political ephemera.
 
Condition: Very fine, the thin red ornamental border now softly faded, with light toning consistent with age.