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Primary sourcePaintingafter 1833

Portrait of Thomas Robert Malthus

John Linnell · after 1833

An engraved portrait of Malthus, based on a painting made the year before his death, showing him seated with a book.

This engraving, based on a portrait made the year before his death, is the standard image of Malthus.

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Black-and-white engraved portrait of an older man with light, curly hair seated in a chair, wearing a dark coat with a high white cravat, holding a closed book in his hands, against a dark background with a classical column.
After John Linnell, Portrait of Thomas Robert Malthus, c. 1833.

About this source

What it is

This is an engraved black-and-white portrait of Thomas Robert Malthus, based on a painting by John Linnell made in 1833, the year before Malthus died. It shows an older man with light, curly hair, seated and holding a closed book, with a classical column in the background.

Why it matters

This image is considered the standard likeness of Malthus from life, made near the end of his career as a political economist. The setting, with a book and classical column, presents him as a serious scholar, the kind of image often used to honor respected thinkers of the period.

Look closer

  • What impression does the portrait try to create about Malthus and his work?
  • Why might the artist have included a book and a classical column in the composition?
  • What does this image not tell you about Malthus's ideas or their impact?

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

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Principles of Political Economy

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Primary source

On the Origin of Species

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