Skip to main content

Primary sourcePhotograph

Portrait of Martin Luther King Jr.

A widely used color photographic portrait of King, commonly seen in classrooms and teaching materials.

The standard lifetime photographic portrait of King, widely used in teaching materials.

Ask Martin Luther King Jr. about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Color photograph close-up of a man with short dark hair, a mustache, and a dark suit with white shirt and dark tie, against a wood-paneled wall, looking to the side.
Color Portrait of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., published on the cover of Sepia magazine.

About this source

What it is

This is a color photograph of Martin Luther King Jr., shown close-up in a dark suit against a wood-paneled wall. It was published on the cover of Sepia magazine.

Why it matters

This image has become the standard photographic likeness of King used in schools and books, shaping how generations have pictured him.

Look closer

  • What mood or impression does this photograph create?
  • Why might a magazine choose this particular pose and setting for its cover?
  • How might repeated use of one image affect how we remember a historical figure?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Martin Luther King Jr. on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Martin Luther King Jr. sources

Meet the AI Martin Luther King Jr. →
Black and white photo of a man in a dark suit speaking into a cluster of microphones at a lectern, with a person in a wide-brimmed hat in the foreground and a white columned background.Speech

Primary source

I Have a Dream

Martin Luther King Jr. · 28 August 1963

A recreated jail cell with pale green painted iron bars and a steel door with a round lock plate. Inside are a white-sheeted bunk bed, a wall-mounted sink, and a toilet on a concrete floor.Letter

Primary source

Letter from Birmingham Jail

Martin Luther King Jr. · 16 April 1963

Bronze plaque on a stone wall above a hedge, reading that the edifice is the site of the last address of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and that from the pulpit of Mason Temple he delivered the speech containing the phrase 'I've been to the mountain top' on April 3, 1968.Speech

Primary source

I've Been to the Mountaintop

Martin Luther King Jr. · 3 April 1968

Speech

Primary source

Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence

Martin Luther King Jr. · 4 April 1967

Typed letter on aged paper addressed 'KING,' containing abusive accusations and a passage urging him to take his own life within 34 days. Several words are partly obscured by typewriter marks.Letter

Primary source

Mlk-uncovered-letter

FBI (presumably William C. Sullivan) · 1964

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Martin Luther King Jr. now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions