# Jeremiah Belknap

- By: Joseph Badger (American, born The Thirteen Colonies, 1708–1765)
- Date: c. 1758
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Classification: Painting
- Dimensions: Framed: 121.9 x 97.2 x 7.6 cm (48 x 38 1/4 x 3 in.); Unframed: 107 x 84 cm (42 1/8 x 33 1/16 in.)
- Culture: United States
- Credit line: Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
- Museum: [Cleveland Museum of Art](https://clevelandart.org/art/1919.1016)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://invisiblenetwork.ai/thumbs/cma/1919.1016/1919.1016_web.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Lacking formal training, Badger got his start painting houses and signs in Boston, then shifted his focus to accommodate the increasing market for portraits in the colonies. Jeremiah Belknap is shown here at about 7 years old, but his attire gives him the appearance of a miniature adult. The artist’s portraits of children often include fruit and animals—the ripening peach in Belknap’s right hand suggests maturation, while the dog at his feet symbolizes loyalty.