PRUDENCE

Date1797

Engraver Thomas Clarke (active 1797-1801)

OriginAmerica, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

MediumEngraving and etching on laid paper with hand color

DimensionsFramed: OH: 6 5/8" x OW: 4 3/8"; Unframed: OH: 6" x OW: 3 3/4"

Credit LineGift of Davida Deutsch in honor of Kim Ivey

Object number2018-156

DescriptionUpper margin: "PRUDENCE."
Inscription on plinth: "O! give they Aid to inexperienc'd Youth : / Point out they Snares that shew the Path of sin : / Display the Charms of Virtue and of Truth./ To lead secure from Scenes of sickening Strife."
Lower margin: "T. Clarke Sculp.t Philadelphia, 1797."
Label TextOriginally printed for 'The American Universal Magazine,' dated May 4, 1797, this depiction of the allegorical figure of Prudence was engraved to serve as the frontispiece for the May 4, 1797 edition which contained an essay on the virtues of prudence as its leading piece. The 'American Universal Magazine' was published by radical British émigré Richard Lee in Philadelphia between 1797 and 1798. Thomas Clarke contributed a number of engravings for the magazine. Little is known about Clarke’s life though he is believed to have immigrated to America from England and worked between 1797 and 1800; working in both Philadelphia and New York City.

See 2008-117 for Clarke's depiction of 'Justice' for 'The American Universal Magazine.'