The Real Face of John Quincy Adams | Browere Life Mask Reconstruction

John Quincy Adams Reconstructed from the Browere Life Mask

John Quincy Adams life mask reconstruction based on the 1825 Browere life mask — Front-facing life mask portrait of John Quincy Adams. Digital life mask reconstruction by Digital Yarbs.

6th U. S. President John Quincy is perhaps my favorite president, though most of his accomplishments were after his presidency, particularly against slavery. Adams once reportedly stated, “The four most miserable years of my life were my four years in the presidency.” As a congressman, Adams said that he took delight in the fact that southerners would forever remember him as “the acutest, the astutest, the archest enemy of southern slavery that ever existed.” It has been suggested that John Quincy Adams had the highest I.Q. of any U.S. president. Dean Simonton, a professor of psychology at UC Davis, estimated his I.Q. score at 175.1 Adams spoke and wrote seven languages by the age of ten. Adams also became a leading force for the promotion of science. As president, he had proposed a national observatory, which did not win much support. Adams became Congress’s primary supporter of the future Smithsonian Institution. He also translated a copy of the New Testament Bible from Greek to English. Quite a resume for “Old Man Eloquent.”

Profile view of the life mask portrait of John Quincy Adams. Digital life mask reconstruction by Digital Yarbs.

Portrait of Young John Quincy Adams, digitally reconstructed life mask to resemble a posed studio photograph — Age regressed life mask portrait of John Quincy Adams. Digital life mask reconstruction by Digital Yarbs.

The Life Mask

John Henri Isaac Browere made the plaster cast of John Quincy Adams while he was President in 1825.

“Washington City, October [28], 1825.

The president requests me to state to Mr. Browere that he will be able to give him two hours tomorrow morning at seven o’clock at his (Mr. Browere’s) rooms on Pennsylvania Avenue. He is so much engaged at present that this is the only time he can conveniently spare for the purpose of your executing his portrait bust from life.

C. F. Adams.”²

Original view of Browere's life masks of John Quincy Adams — Life masks of John Quincy Adams Source: Cheryl A. Daniel, with special thanks to Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown N.Y.

Reconstructed life mask of John Quincy Adams — Life mask reconstruction of John Quincy Adams.

J. I. Browere’s “work achieved a stark realism uncommon in that day. His plaster busts showed the age-lined brow, the pock-marked face; his subjects appeared as they were, not as artists generally portrayed them. His life masks were, and remain, the most authentic likenesses of some historic figures who lived in a day before photography provided more easily obtained but similarly uncompromising portraits.”³

“Adams was 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighed about 175 pounds. He had penetrating black eyes.”⁴

At the time of his life mask casting, Adams was 58 years old. The reconstruction shows Adams as he appeared when he was President with brown hair and no sideburns, or mutton chops as they were called in his time.

John Quincy Adams through his ages, daguerreotype, life mask, de-aged life mask.

John Quincy Adams sitting with his wife Louisa Adams — John Quincy Adams (based on his life mask) sitting with his wife Louisa Adams (based on her painted portrait).

John Quincy Adams 1825 Life Mask

See the Real Face of John Quincy Adams when he was President in 1825 - Life Mask Brought To Life

Andrew Jackson Confronts John Quincy Adams

President's Fight Club: Jackson vs. Adams

The year is 1825. John Quincy Adams has taken the oath of office, but Andrew Jackson believes the presidency was stolen from him through the infamous "Corrupt Bargain." Furious and unwilling to let the matter rest, Jackson confronts Adams, determined to make him answer for what he sees as a stolen election. Expecting an easy victory over the reserved New England statesman, Jackson may discover that Adams is far more formidable than anyone imagined.

A fictional alternate-history story featuring historically reconstructed likenesses based on life masks, daguerreotypes, portraits, and contemporary records.

Andrew Jackson walks in and put out his cigar on Adams' paper. — Andrew Jackson puts out his cigar on the papers of John Quincy Adams. This is the final straw in their fight. Image is based on the life mask of John Quincy Adams and the daguerreotype of Andrew Jackson for facial accuracy.

From Life Masks to Alternate History: John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson Brought to Life

John Quincy Adams vs. Andrew Jackson - Episode 1

It is 1825, and John Quincy Adams has become President of the United States. Andrew Jackson believes the election was stolen from him through the infamous "Corrupt Bargain" and refuses to accept Adams as the rightful president. Convinced that Adams must answer for what he sees as a betrayal, Jackson confronts him with intimidation and violence. After enduring Jackson's attacks, Adams turns to his wife Louisa and realizes that he can no longer simply endure the humiliation. If Jackson returns, Adams must be prepared to stand his ground.

John Quincy Adams vs. Andrew Jackson - Episode 2

After deciding he can no longer allow Andrew Jackson to bully him, John Quincy Adams seeks help from an unexpected ally — the legendary Marquis de Lafayette. Under Lafayette's guidance, Adams begins preparing himself for the confrontation he knows is coming. But can a scholar and statesman transform himself into a fighter? When Jackson returns, he may find that the quiet sixth president is no longer the same man he once pushed around.