Pocahontas, Baptism of by John Gadsby Chapman Art Print

An archival premium Quality Art Print of The Baptism of Pocahontas by John Chapman for sale by Brandywine General Store. The artist received the commission for the Rotunda painting in 1837 and he selected Pocahontas as the subject to paint. The painting was delivered to the US Capitol building and was installed in the Rotunda in November of 1840. The artist said the money he received from the government for the painting was barely equivalent to its cost to him to paint. Chapman later died in poverty. This scene represents the ceremony in which Pocahontas, the daughter of the influential Algonkian Chief Powhatan, being baptized and given the name Rebecca in an Anglican Church. The time was 1613 or 1614 in the colony at Jamestown, Virginia. Pocahontas is thought to be the first Indian to convert to Christianity in the new English colonies. This ceremony and her marriage to John Rolfe helped establish more peaceful relations between the colonists and the Native Americans of the Tidewater region of the Virginia colony. In this scene Pocahontas the officiating minister are given prominence with the light shining in on them. Pocahontas kneels on the top level of a stepped dais. Reverend Alexander Whiteaker raised his eyes and his left hand, while his right hand rests on the baptismal font. John Rolfe, her future husband stands behind her. At the left of the painting in front of the chair is Sir Thomas Dale, the deputy governor of the colony. Pocahontas's regally dressed brother, Nantequaus, turns away from the ceremony as her uncle Opachisco leans in from the right. The seated brooding figure of another uncle, Opechankanough, turns completely away from the ceremony while Pocahontas's sister, with a baby, watches from the floor. So the Indians were not in agreement with this ceremony, as evidenced by their reactions in the painting. Chapman tried to make this work as realistic as possible, the original Jamestown Church had already been torn down, so he found another one of approximately the same age which he used for the setting. Famous people art print #21