Abe Lincoln historians and art historians alike have been stunned by this newly discovered art hoax:
For 32 years, a portrait of a serene Mary Todd Lincoln hung in the governor’s mansion in Springfield, Ill., signed by Francis Bicknell Carpenter, a celebrated painter who lived at the White House for six months in 1864.
The story behind the picture was compelling: Mrs. Lincoln had Mr. Carpenter secretly paint her portrait as a surprise for the president, but he was assassinated before she had a chance to present it to him.
Now it turns out that both the portrait and the touching tale accompanying it are false.
There’s a lot more to this story, so I recommend that you read the entire New York Times article. But before you leave me, here’s a limerick:
Mary, Mary? Au Contrairie (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane
Art historians suffered a shock:
Mrs. Lincoln’s famed portrait’s a crock.
A rip-off took place–
The pic hasn’t a trace
Of Abe’s Mary — it’s scam-ridden schlock.
