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Secondary sourcePaintingc. 1800

Silhouette of Tadeusz Kościuszko

c. 1800

An anonymous silhouette portrait of Kościuszko made around 1800, a simple keepsake-style likeness.

This anonymous silhouette preserves a likeness of Kościuszko as he was remembered by admirers.

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Oval silhouette in black on a green background, showing a man in profile facing right. He wears a tall hat with a plume and a high collar with epaulette-like shoulder details. Light green lines detail the hair, hat and clothing.
Silhouette of Tadeusz Kościuszko, anonymous, c. 1800. National Museum in Warsaw.

About this source

What it is

This oval silhouette, made around 1800 by an unknown artist, shows Tadeusz Kościuszko in profile wearing a plumed hat. It is held by the National Museum in Warsaw.

Why it matters

Silhouettes were a common and affordable way to keep someone's likeness before photography. This modest image shows how admirers of Kościuszko, already a celebrated figure, wanted to preserve his image even in simple form.

Look closer

  • Why might an admirer choose a silhouette instead of a full painted portrait?
  • What details can you still make out about Kościuszko's appearance from just an outline?
  • What does the choice to show him in a hat with a plume suggest about how he was viewed?

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

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Printed broadside proclamation headed 'RADA NAYWYZSZA NARODOWA' with the name Tadeusz Kosciuszko in large capitals, dated Warsaw 30 Maja 1794, in Polish, printed in two columns on aged paper with a signature and seal mark at the bottom.Document

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Proclamation of Połaniec

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Oil painting of a young man with curly brown hair in a dark coat and white cravat, reclining on a green day bed with one hand raised to his head. Red curtains frame a window showing a domed building. A desk with papers and an inkstand is at left, and a red book and letters lie on the bed.Painting

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General Thaddeus Kosciusko

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Oil painting of a man with dark, tousled hair in a dark coat over a blue sash, with a white collar and black cravat, looking toward the viewer against a grey-brown background.Painting

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Portrait of Tadeusz Kościuszko

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1778

Handwritten manuscript page in Polish, dark ink on aged paper, with an ornate title reading 'Ustawa Rządowa' and the opening invocation 'W Imię Boga w Trójcy Świętey Jedynego', followed by a list of royal titles and body text in cursive. A handwritten date notation appears at top right.Document

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Constitution of May 3, 1791

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