Please note that the 2nd floor of the Hamilton Building will be closed to the public on Thursday, April 9, and Friday, April 10, for a private event. The Bodies and Soul exhibition will remain open.
Visit America’s first museum and school of fine arts — established in 1805.
Visit us in the Hamilton Building, which is open Thursday–Sunday → Plan Your Visit
Patrick Lyon (1779-1829) was wrongfully seized and imprisoned for three months following a robbery at the Bank of Pennsylvania. Accused as an accomplice because he had manufactured the vault doors, Lyon was cleared of charges and awarded a large sum for damages when his counter-suit came to trial in 1805. Akin's print was probably made soon after the apprehension of the actual thieves and Lyon's release from prison in late 1798. John Neagle's portrait of the triumphant blacksmith, "Pat Lyon at the Forge" of 1829 (1842.1) recalls this moment of humiliation by showing the Walnut St. Jail in the background.