Banknote Studies [recto] 1840

John William Casilear created this graphite drawing called "Banknote Studies" on a sheet of paper sometime in the mid-19th century. The image depicts cherubic figures that seem to be studies for the kind of allegorical figures that would have been used in banknote design. The United States at this time had no central bank. The value of paper money issued by private banks was notoriously unstable. One way to create confidence in a given banknote was to include imagery that invoked the classical tradition of stable republics. Casilear's drawing can be seen as part of a larger cultural effort to stabilize the perception of American currency through references to classical art and republican ideals. Further study of Casilear’s work and the archives of engraving firms might reveal the specific context for this drawing and give us a greater understanding of the politics of imagery in 19th-century America.