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Primary sourcePainting1712 (after a 1702 portrait)

Sir Isaac Newton, mezzotint by J. Smith, 1712, after Kneller

J. Smith, after Sir Godfrey Kneller · 1712 (after a 1702 portrait)

A 1712 mezzotint of Newton copying Godfrey Kneller's 1702 portrait, made within Newton's lifetime.

A lifetime-era mezzotint copying Kneller's well-known portrait of Newton.

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Black and white mezzotint portrait of Isaac Newton in an oval frame, shown from the chest up, with long curled wig, a loose cravat and draped robe. Inscription 'Isaacus Newton Eq. Aur.' appears in script below.
J. Smith, Sir Isaac Newton (after Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1702), mezzotint, 1712. Wellcome Collection.

About this source

What it is

This mezzotint, made in 1712 after J. Smith, reproduces a 1702 portrait of Isaac Newton by Sir Godfrey Kneller. It shows Newton in an oval frame, wearing a curled wig and draped robe. It is held by the Wellcome Collection.

Why it matters

This print shows how Kneller's influential portrait of Newton continued to be copied years after it was first painted, spreading a consistent image of the scientist. Such prints were a common way for the public to know what prominent figures looked like before photography existed.

Look closer

  • Why do you think this portrait was placed in an oval frame?
  • What might the choice of a loose, draped robe suggest about how Newton wanted to be seen?
  • How does copying a portrait across different prints change or preserve its message?

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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