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Primary sourcePainting1726

Portrait of Sir Isaac Newton

George Vertue, after I. Vanderbank · 1726

An engraved portrait of Isaac Newton made in 1726, the year before he died, showing him seated in a chair beside a classical column.

This portrait of Newton, made in 1726 while he was alive, is a contemporary image of his appearance in old age.

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Page from a bound book showing an engraved portrait of Isaac Newton seated in a high-backed chair beside a classical column, wearing a long coat and white cuffs. Caption below reads 'Isaacus Newton Eq. Aur. Aet. 83', with engraver credits 'I. Vanderbank pinxit 1725' and 'Geo. Vertue Sculpsit 1726'.
George Vertue, after a painting by I. Vanderbank (1725), Portrait of Sir Isaac Newton, 1726. Albertina Museum, Vienna.

About this source

What it is

This is an engraving showing Isaac Newton seated in a high-backed chair beside a classical column, wearing a long coat with white cuffs. It was painted by I. Vanderbank in 1725 and engraved by George Vertue in 1726, when Newton was 83 years old. The print is now held by the Albertina Museum.

Why it matters

Because it was made while Newton was still alive, it counts as a direct record of how he looked near the end of his life, created by artists who could have seen him in person. Portraits like this helped spread Newton's image as a famous scientist across Europe.

Look closer

  • What does the chair, the column, and his clothing suggest about how the artists wanted Newton to be seen?
  • Why might an engraver copy a painting, rather than drawing Newton directly?
  • What does the caption, with Newton's age, tell you about when this was made?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Isaac Newton on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Title page of the 1687 first edition of Newton's Principia. Large capitals read PHILOSOPHIÆ NATURALIS PRINCIPIA MATHEMATICA, with author credit, Imprimatur by S. Pepys, dated Julii 5, 1686, and London printing by Josephi Streater, Anno MDCLXXXVII.Book

Primary source

Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica

Isaac Newton · 1687

Title page with a page number marked [1] at top, reading PHILOSOPHIAE NATURALIS Principia MATHEMATICA, followed by the heading Definitiones and Def. I, with a Latin definition of quantity of matter in italic type. Faint bleed-through text from the reverse page is visible.Book

Primary source

Principia Mathematica, Page 1: Definitions

Isaac Newton · 1687

Black-and-white line engraving of an elderly man with long, wavy white hair seated in a dark armchair, wearing a dark coat, waistcoat, and white cravat, with his hands resting on his knee. A column appears at the right. Inscribed beneath: 'ISAACUS NEWTON EQ. AUR. ÆT. 83', with 'I. Vanderbank pinxit 1725' at lower left and 'Geo. Vertue Sculpsit 1726' at lower right.Painting

Primary source

Sir Isaac Newton, line engraving by Vertue, 1726

George Vertue · 1726

Engraved diagram on a cream page within a book, showing a curved comet path from Sol at left, with dated positions such as Nov. 25, Dec. 12, Jan. 5 and Mar. 5, labeled orbit lines and a sphere intersection line.Document

Primary source

Principia Mathematica, Fold-out Diagram

Isaac Newton · 1687

Engraved portrait of Sir Isaac Newton, a man with long curled wig and dark robe, bust-length, against a shaded background. Caption below reads 'SIR ISAAC NEWTON' and publisher 'William Collins Glasgow & London'.Painting

Primary source

Sir Isaac Newton, stipple engraving by J. Scott after Kneller, 1702

J. Scott, after Sir Godfrey Kneller · 1702 (print made later)

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