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Primary sourcePaintingc. 1791-1792

Thomas Paine

Laurent Dabos · c. 1791-1792

An oil portrait of Thomas Paine painted from life around 1791-92 by Laurent Dabos, showing him as a revolutionary deputy in France.

A life portrait of Paine from his years as a revolutionary deputy in France, showing him as a serious political writer.

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Oil portrait of a seated older man with gray hair, dressed in a black coat and white cravat, holding a sheet of handwritten paper in one hand with a quill pen on a desk beside him. He sits in a green and gold armchair before a gray drape and paneled wall.
Laurent Dabos, Thomas Paine, c. 1791-1792. National Portrait Gallery, London.

About this source

What it is

This is an oil painting by the French artist Laurent Dabos, made around 1791–92, showing Thomas Paine seated with a sheet of handwritten paper and a quill pen beside him. It is held by the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Why it matters

Painted from life during Paine's years as a deputy in revolutionary France, this portrait gives us a direct likeness of him at the height of his political fame, after writing Rights of Man. It shows how he was seen as a serious political and literary figure, not just a pamphleteer.

Look closer

  • What does the quill pen and paper in the painting suggest about how Paine wanted to be remembered?
  • Why might a French artist have chosen to paint an English-born writer at this time?
  • What clues in his clothing and setting suggest his social and political status?

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

More Thomas Paine sources

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Title page of the 1776 Philadelphia pamphlet Common Sense, addressed to the Inhabitants of America, printed by R. Bell in Third Street. Handwritten annotations include a name in the top corner and Thomas Paine's name near the bottom.Book

Primary source

Common Sense

Thomas Paine · 10 January 1776

Photograph of the first page of a printed 1776 pamphlet titled The American Crisis, Number I, by Thomas Paine, with handwritten annotations at the top reading 'by Thomas Paine' and 'published in the Penn. Journal' and 'June 1776'. The printed text begins 'These are the times that try men's souls.'Book

Primary source

The American Crisis

Thomas Paine · 1776-1783

Title page of Rights of Man, reading 'Rights of Man: Being an Answer to Mr. Burke's Attack on the French Revolution, by Thomas Paine, Secretary for Foreign Affairs to Congress in the American War, and Author of the Work Intitled Common Sense. London: Printed for J. S. Jordan, No. 166, Fleet-Street. MDCCXCI.' Handwritten ink marks appear in the upper right corner.Book

Primary source

Rights of Man

Thomas Paine · 1791-1792

Title page of The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine. Text reads: 'The Age of Reason; Being an Investigation of True and Fabulous Theology. By Thomas Paine, Secretary for Foreign Affairs to Congress in the American War, and author of the works entitled Common Sense, and Rights of Man, &c. Paris: Printed by Barrois. London: Sold by D. I. Eaton, at the Cock and Swine, No. 74, Newgate-street. 1794. Price two shillings.'Book

Primary source

The Age of Reason

Thomas Paine · 1794-1807

Scan of the engrossed Declaration of Independence on aged parchment. Heading reads 'In Congress, July 4, 1776' with the title 'The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States of America' below. Dense handwritten text fills the page; signatures appear at the bottom.Document

Primary source

Declaration of Independence

Continental Congress (drafted by Thomas Jefferson) · 1776

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