23. Samuel F. B. Morse

In the Christian Petersen Art Collection, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Date	c. 1920
Material	Painted plaster
Dimensions	6 1/2 x 7/8 in. (16.5 x 2.2 cm) [diameter x depth]
Description	Bas relief of Samuel Morse (1791-1872), an artist who invented the telegraph in 1837, wearing medals. Could have been scaled down for a medallion.
Markings	SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE
Provenance / Location	George Nerney; Mrs. Helen Nerney Shaw; SC, Gift of Mrs. Helen Nerney Shaw. CPAC, Transferred from Special Collections, Iowa State Library. UM99.52
Alternate Title(s)	n/a
Notes / Sources	Papers, SC, Box 2 f.9, pictured in catalogue for Wrought Iron and Bronze, Chicago.

Samuel Finley Breese Morse (1791 – 1872) was an American artist, inventor, and philanthropist. Most commonly known for his improvement of the single-wire telegraph and as the co-inventor of the eponymous code used to transmit messages across long distances, Morse also had a successful career as an artist. He was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, to a Calvinist pastor and was educated at Philips Academy and Yale College where he used his talent in painting to support himself while attending lectures in theology and science.

After graduating from Yale and with support from his father, Morse sailed to England to study at the Royal Academy in 1811. While his early works depict romantic mythological themes, such as Dying Hercules and Judgement of Jupiter, Morse became a successful portrait painter upon his return to the United States three years later. Between 1815 and 1825, he painted former President John Adams, sitting President James Monroe, and American Revolutionary War hero Marquis de Lafayette. Morse was a founding member and president of the National Academy of Design and later taught painting and sculpture at the University of the City of New York (now New York University).