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The Return of Neptune

ca. 1754
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 774
A prodigious talent at fifteen, John Singleton Copley learned his trade by copying reproductions of Italian mythological paintings. This charming juvenilia depicting Neptune and his retinue reminds us that Copley and the sitters in his later, mature portraits lived along the New England Coast and were deeply connected—economically and psychologically—to the sea.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Return of Neptune
  • Artist: John Singleton Copley (American, Boston, Massachusetts 1738–1815 London)
  • Date: ca. 1754
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 27 1/2 x 44 1/2 in. (69.9 x 113 cm)
  • Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. Orme Wilson, in memory of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. Nelson Borland, 1959
  • Object Number: 59.198
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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Study for "The Siege of Gibraltar": Three Figures, John Singleton Copley American, Black and red chalk on blue laid paper, American
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Study for "The Tribute Money", John Singleton Copley American, Black chalk and white-chalk heightening on blue laid paper, American
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Study for "The Siege of Gibraltar": Sprawling Figures, John Singleton Copley American, Black chalk on off-white laid paper, American
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John Singleton Copley - The Return of Neptune - American - The Metropolitan Museum of Art