Secondary sourcePainting

Portrait of Thomas Hobbes

An engraved portrait of Hobbes as an older man, labelled with his name and age at 76.

This engraving depicts Hobbes in old age, labelled with his name and age, part of a tradition of commemorative portraits.

Ask Thomas Hobbes about this source View the original

Black and white engraved portrait of an older man with wavy hair, a mustache, and a white collar, set in an oval frame on a pedestal. Caption below reads Thomas Hobbes Malmesburiensis, Aetatis Suae 76. Page number pag. 221 at top right. — Portrait of Thomas Hobbes, engraving, artist and date unknown.

About this source

What it is

This is a black and white engraved portrait of Thomas Hobbes, shown as an older man with wavy hair and a mustache, set in an oval frame. The caption beneath identifies him as 'Thomas Hobbes Malmesburiensis, Aetatis Suae 76' (Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury, in his 76th year). The artist and exact date are not recorded.

Why it matters

Portraits like this helped spread an image of Hobbes as a respected, elderly scholar long after his lifetime, shaping how later readers pictured the philosopher behind works like Leviathan. The Latin caption, naming his hometown and age, reflects how educated audiences of the time presented learned men.

Look closer

Why might the engraver have included Hobbes's age and hometown in the caption?
What does the oval frame and pedestal suggest about how Hobbes was meant to be seen?
Why is it useful, or risky, to use an undated, unattributed image as a historical source?

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