This print is based on the famous “Lansdowne” portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart. As Washington sat for Stuart, he was struggling with a disagreeing cabinet and elements of the press that depicted him as a despotic monarch. Stuart chose to counter that view by depicting Washington as an aristocratic leader surrounded by symbolic references to peace, prosperity, and the Roman Republic. This portrayal helped to further the public’s opinion of Washington as a new Cincinnatus, the Roman citizen soldier who laid down his arms after establishing peace.