Our 2022 White House Ornament is a study of visual elegance. Through the use of light and shadow, the viewer's attention is directed to Gilbert Stuart's painting of George Washington - the focal point of the painting and the entire East Room of the White House.
Details
- Materials: Brass with 24 karat gold finish
- Size: 3 1/4" x 2 3/4 x 1/4"
- Included: Ornament, history card
- Package: Beautiful, custom green and gold box
- Origin: Made in America
- Exclusivity: These Heritage Collection ornaments are designed with care by our team and led by our expert historian, and are not sold anywhere else
More about the design
This ornament is even more beautiful in your hands and on your tree than it is in the pictures. The 3-D Christmas tree is physically mounted above the rest of the ornament, casting real shadows. The white banner at the bottom of the ornament is surfaced above the beautiful gold frame. Incredible attention was paid to details in the design.
More about the ornament
The East Room is the largest of the State Rooms in the White House and was the last to be finished. Architect James Hoban and President George Washington designed it to be a “Public Audience Room. “President John Adams and First Lady Abigail Adams, the first couple to occupy the Executive Mansion, hung their laundry to dry in the unfinished East Room.
When President James Madison and First Lady Dolley Madison moved into the house in 1809, they contracted architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe to decorate the State Rooms, but war with Great Britain interrupted their plans. On August 24, 1814, British troops burned many of the important buildings in Washington, including the White House.
Hanging in the White House was a life-sized painting of George Washington, known as Gilbert Stuart’s Landsdowne portrait, one of the most iconic representations of the first President of the United States. Preserving the portrait was important, but it was critical that it did not fall into the hands of the British. Dolley Madison ordered the canvas to be removed from its frame and taken to safety before the British burned the President’s House.
Read more in the included brochure!