Portrait of John Jay

What it is

This 1794 oil portrait by the American artist Gilbert Stuart depicts John Jay, who was serving as Chief Justice of the United States at the time. Jay commissioned Stuart to paint him wearing the robes he had worn when Harvard College awarded him an honorary degree. The portrait is now held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

Why it matters

Painted the same year Jay negotiated the controversial Jay Treaty with Great Britain, the portrait shows him at the height of his public career. Stuart, who had known Jay in London, used the sittings to attract further commissions from wealthy New Yorkers, showing how portraiture served both historical memory and an artist's livelihood.

Look closer

• What does Jay's clothing and pose suggest about how he wanted to be seen?
• Why might Jay have chosen to be painted in academic robes rather than ordinary dress?
• What does this portrait leave out about the controversies Jay faced that same year?