Edgar Allan Poe's Appearance, Etc.

As with other matters relating to Poe, the recollections of his appearance are often contradictory. Fortunately, what Poe looked like is unusually well documented. In addition to textual descriptions, we have photographs, a woodcut and a steel engraving. An oil painting, two watercolors and locks of his hair add further details. A number of false portraits have cropped up over the years, often with little reason for thinking that they represent Poe. By far the best study of Poe's appearance is Michael Deas’ Portraits and Daguerreotypes of Edgar Allan Poe, a well-researched and well-written account of all the known portraits. It should be noted that a general agreement between several descriptions of Poe's appearance, especially when given after 1880, may reveal that the individuals had all referred to the same published account in an effort to bolster a weak or uncertain memory. The phrasing of some recollections is remarkably similar.

Most general accounts of Poe's appearance relate that he was a handsome man. Women in particular considered him good looking. His attractiveness was enhanced by his bearing, which seems to have been influenced by his brief military experience. A great number of comments focus on the expansive nature of his forehead, which was granted special significance while phrenology, now dismissed as nonsense, was widely considered a reliable science.

“His face is a fine one, and well gifted with intellectual beauty” (Thomas Dunn English, The Aristidean, April, 1845. The Poe Log, p. 529).

“Poe, himself, is a very good looking fellow” (William Gilmore Simms to the Southern Patriot, July 15, 1846, quoted in The Poe Log, p. 655)

“Mr. Poe is a small thin man, slightly formed, keen visaged with dark complexion, dark hair, and we believe dark eyes. His face is not an ordinary one” (John M. Daniel, The Semi-Weekly Examiner, August 21, 1849, quoted in The Poe Log, p. 827.)

In 1845, Poe greeted Mrs. Osgood with “... his proud and beautiful head erect, his dark eyes flashing with the elective light of feeling and of thought, a peculiar, an inimitable blending of sweetness and hauteur in his expression and manner. ...” (Frances S. Osgood to Hermann S. Saroni, Saroni's Musical Times, December 8, 1849, quoted in The Poe Log, p. 512, although they accept Griswold's false impression that the letter was written to him. See Burton R. Pollin, “Frances Sargent Osgood and Saroni's Musical Times, Documents Linking Poe, Osgood, and Griswold,” Poe Studies, XXIII, No. 2, December 1990, pp. 27-36.)

“His features were not large, were rather irregular, and decidedly handsome. ... The general expression of his face beyond the ordinary abstraction was not pleasant. It was neither insolent, rude, nor angry. But it was decidedly disagreeable, nevertheless. ... His forehead was, without exception, the finest in its proportions and expression that we have ever seen” (John M. Daniel, Southern Literary Messenger, March 1850. Reprinted in Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 362).

“He was, in my opinion rather [more] distinguished-looking than handsome” (Susan Archer Tally Weiss, “The Last Days of Edgar A. Poe,” p. 711).

“Poe had a remarkably pleasing and prepossessing countenance, what the ladies would call decidedly handsome” (William Gowan, quoted in Quinn, p. 267 and The Poe Log, p. 242).

“I distinctly recall his face, with its ample forehead, brilliant eyes, and narrowness of nose and chin; an essentially ideal face, not noble, yet anything but coarse, with the look of oversensitiveness which when uncontrolled may prove more debasing that coarseness. It was a face to rivet one's attention in any crowd; yet a face that no one would feel safe in loving. ...” (Thomas Wentworth Higginson, quoted in The Poe Log, pp. 577-578).

“His face was rather oval — tapering in the contour rather suddenly to the chin, which was very classical — and, especially when he smiled, really handsome” (Thomas Holley Chivers, Chivers Life of Poe, pp. 56-57).

“Poe's face was handsome. Although his forehead when seen in profile showed a receding line from the brow up, viewed from the front it presented a broad and noble expanse, very large at and above the temples” (John Sartain, Reminiscences of a Very Old Man, p. 215).

“No one knew of the origin of the scar on his [Edgar's] shoulder but Virginia, so Mrs. Clemm told me. ... I have seen the scar of the wound in the left shoulder, when helping Mrs. Clemm change his dress or clothes while ill. She said only Virginia knew about it. She [Mrs. Clemm] did not” (Marie Louise Shew to John Ingram, May 16, 1875, quoted by John C. Miller, Building Poe Biography, pp. 137 and 139).

Poe's military records from West Point give his height as 5 foot, 8 inches. (A photographic reproduction is reprinted in Michael Deas, Portraits of Poe, p. 4. The same document is excerpted in The Poe Log, p. 80.) Poe himself repeated this height in a letter to Joseph M. Field, June 15, 1846, “I am 33 years of age — height 5 ft. 8” (Ostrom, Letters, p. 319). Dr. John J. Moran's description inexplicably added 2 inches to this height, making Poe 5 foot, 10 inches. Moran gave Poe's weight as 140 pounds (A Defense of Edgar Allan Poe, 1885, p. 82-83).

H. B. Hirst's 1843 biographical article on Poe from the Philadelphia Saturday Museum says, “He is now but little more than thirty years of age; in person, he is somewhat slender, about five feet, eight inches in height, and well proportioned” (“Edgar Allan Poe,” Saturday Museum, March 4, 1843).

“He [Poe] is ... some five feet, eight inches in height, of rather slender person, with a good eye, and a broad intelligent forehead” (Letter from W. G. Simms published in the Southern Patriot, July 15, 1846, quoted in The Poe Log, p. 656).

In 1880, Miles George recalled Poe from his days as a student at the University of Virginia, “He was of a rather delicate and slender mould. His legs not bowed, or so slightly so, as to escape notice, did not detract either from the symmetry of his person or the ease and grace of his carriage — To be practical and unpoetical I think his weight was between 130 & 140 pounds” (Miles George to Edward V. Valentine, May 18, 1880, Ingram collection, item 351, quoted in Quinn, Edgar Allan Poe, pp. 107-108).

Griswold described Poe as, “In person, he was below the middle height, slenderly but compactly formed, and in his better moments he had in an eminent degree that air of gentlemanliness which men of a lower order seldom succeed in acquiring” (Rufus W. Griswold, “Memoir of the Author,” 1850, p. xxxviii).

“In person Mr Edgar Poe was rather below the middle height, slenderly but compactly built. His hands and feet were moderately large, and strongly shaped, as were all his joints” (John M. Daniel, Southern Literary Messenger, March 1850, p. 179. Reprinted in Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 361.)

J. H. B. Latrobe recalled Poe, in 1875, as being “... if anything, below middle size, and yet could not be described as a small man. His figure was remarkable good, and he carried himself erect and well, as one who had been trained to it” (J. H. B. Latrobe, quoted in S. S. Rice, Edgar Allan Poe: A Memorial Volume, 1877, p. 60).

“His form was slender, and by no means prepossessing — and appeared to me, in walking, to lean a little forward with a kind of meditative or Grecian bend. ... His neck was rather long and slender, and made him appear, when sitting, rather taller than he really was. He also, appeared when sitting, to have a gentle and rather graceful taper of the bust and shoulders upward. This was very peculiar. ... His arms and hands were slender, and tapered very gracefully and gently down to the ends of his fingers, which were tender, gentlemanly, and lady-like. In fact, his hands were truly remarkable for their roseate softness and lily-like, feminine delicacy. You could have judged of his nobility by his hands” (T. H. Chivers, Chivers Life of Poe, pp. 53-56).

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “Mr. Poe was about five feet eight inches tall. ... He was very slender when I first knew him, but had a fine figure, an erect military carriage, and a quick step. But it was his manner that most charmed” (Van Cleef, “Poe's Mary,” p. 635).

E. L. Didier gives this somehat dissenting description of Poe, presumably based on first-hand testimony from Maria Clemm, Neilson Poe, N. C. Brooks and others: “Edgar Poe was five feet six inches high ... his shoulders were broad, his chest full, his waist small, his limbs symmetrical, his feet and hands as beautiful and shapely as a girl's. He had the firm step, erect form, and military bearing observable in all West-Pointers” (Didier, p. 125).

O. P Fitzgerald described Poe as “A compact, well-set man, about five feet six inches high, straight as an arrow ...” (Harrison, Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe, 1:316. Also repeated in The Poe Log, p. 821).

In 1902, Dr. John Carter recalled Poe as “... rather slight ... compact, muscular, and perfectly proportioned, and his movements active and graceful” (Carter, p. 565).

Considering the amount of attention evidently attracted by Poe's eyes, descriptions are surprisingly varied. The color is given as grey, hazel, violet and even blue. Mabbott states that the color of Poe's eyes was hazel, with no explanation as to the source (Mabbott, Poems, 1969, p. 570. Mabbott may have accepted Chivers’ description noted below, or the oil portrait by S. S. Osgood.) The records at West Point record his eyes as grey.

Michael Deas describes the eyes in the oil painting by Samuel Stillman Osgood, made about 1845, as “... hazel-colored, mottled with flecks of black” (Deas, Portraits, p. 24). The watercolor by A. C. Smith, about 1843 or 1844, gives Poe's eyes as “... grey and expressive” (Deas, Portraits, p. 19). In the miniature watercolor by John A. McDougal, about 1846, Poe's eyes are “... a bluish grey, rather than the pure grey they are most commonly said to have been” (Deas, Portraits, p. 31).

Hirst's 1843 article describes Poe's eyes as “... grey and restless, exhibiting a marked nervousness” (“Edgar Allan Poe,” Saturday Museum, March 4, 1843)

“The color of his fine eyes generally seemed to be dark grey; but on closer examination, they seemed to be that neutral violet tint, which is so difficult to define.” (John M. Daniel, Southern Literary Messenger, March 1850, p. 179, col. 2. Reprinted in Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 361.)

“Poe's eyes, indeed, were his most striking feature. ... They were large, with long, jet-black lashes, — the iris dark steel-gray, possessing a crystalline clearness and transparency, through which the jet-black pupil was seen to expand and contract with every shade of thought or emotion. ... (Weiss, “The Last Days of Edgar A. Poe,” p. 711).

Griswold notes only that Poe's eyes were “... large and variably expressive...” (Griswold, 1850, p. xxxviii).

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “His eyes were large and full, gray and piercing.” (Van Cleef, “Poe's Mary,” p. 635).

T. D. Chivers says, “His eyes were of a neutral violet tint, rather hazel, and shone not with a dazzling or brilliant sparkle, but rather with a mildly subdued serenity of intellectual splendor — perhaps on account of the dark shadow cast upon them by the overhanging and very impressive cloud of his Moon-like brow — giving them the soft celestial glow of soul which characterized the loftiest enthusiasm. ... When the Heaven of his brow was free from clouds ... the intellectual placidity of his mildly beaming eyes were beautiful.” (Chivers’ Life of Poe, p. 54. Chivers’ work contains numerous references to Poe's “midly beaming” eyes, always as being hazel in color.)

Didier says, “His eyes were dark gray, with a sad but fascinating expression. ...” (Didier, p. 125).

Mrs. Shew, in 1875, stated “He had ... blue eyes with dark lashes, or bluish grey. ...” (quoted in Miller, Building Poe Biography, p. 212).

It has commonly been stated that Poe's hair was black, often with the poetical note that it was “black as a raven's wing.” Several locks of his hair survive, however, and all attest clearly that his hair was dark brown. The error is undoubtedly attributable to the frailty of human memory and the fact that all photographs of the time were black and white, which accentuated the natural darkness of his hair. Poe first grew his now-famous mustache in about 1845. Prior to that time he seems to have preferred long sideburns.

Hirst says in 1843, “His hair is nearly black and partially curling.” (“Edgar Allan Poe,” Saturday Museum, March 4, 1843)

“His hair was dark as a raven's wing. So was his beard — which he always kept shaved.” (T. H. Chivers, Chivers Life of Poe, p. 53).

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “Poe ... had dark, almost black hair, which he wore long and brushed back in student style over his ears. It was as fine as silk. ... He was then, I think, entirely clean-shaven” (Van Cleef, “Poe's Mary,” p. 635).

“His dark, curling hair was thrown back from his broad forehead — a style in which he habitually wore it” (Weiss, p. 708).

“Over his broad, white forehead fell the rich dark hair, almost as black as the wings of his own ‘Raven’ ” (Didier, p. 126).

Mrs. Shew recalled in 1875, “... Mr. Poe had curling hair, he wet it often to straighten it, ... He had fine dark, curling hair ...” (quoted in Miller, Building Poe Biography, p. 121).

“Mr. Poe's hair was dark, and when we knew him, seemed to be slightly sprinkled with grey. He wore a heavy and ill-trimmed moustache.” (John M. Daniel, Southern Literary Messenger, March 1850. Reprinted in Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 362.)

“He wore a dark mustache, scrupulously kept, but not entirely concealing a slightly contracted expression of the mouth and an occasional twitching of the upper lip. ...” (Weiss, p. 709).

“His complexion was pale, but it was a clear ‘translucent pallor,’ not the sickly hue of ill health.” (Didier, p. 126).

Hirst says “... his complexion is rather fair.” (“Edgar Allan Poe,” Saturday Museum, March 4, 1843)

“His complexion was clear and dark — when the writer knew him.” (John M. Daniel, Southern Literary Messenger, March 1850. Reprinted in Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 362.)

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “He was pale, and had no color. His skin was of a clear, beautiful olive” (Van Cleef, “Poe's Mary,” p. 635).

Descriptions of Poe's clothing consistently note that it was well cared for and mended, but clearly old and worn. At various times, Mrs. Clemm raised some money by making and mending dresses. No doubt she helped to repair Edgar's suits as well. In both the “McKee” and “Whitman” Daguerreotypes, Poe wears the same greatcoat. He seems to have prefered a black frockcoat with a white shirt and a black cravat, tied somewhat loosely. Portraits show him wearing either a white or black vest.

A number of recollections mention offhandedly that Poe wore a hat, but few actually describe it and none in recollections written during his lifetime. This consistent oversight suggests that Poe's hat was typically of a rather common style of the period, and as such not worth special attention. Only O. P. Fitzgerald mentions Poe wearing a Panama hat. The greatest probability is that Poe usually wore what we now call a top hat, of the sort frequently shown in the fashion plates in Graham's Magazine and Godey's Lady's Book. This assumption is confirmed by the Traylor Daguerreotype, which shows part of Poe's hat, although it is hidden underneath the picture's frame (see Deas, Portraits, p. 59).

The oil painting by Samuel Stillman Osgood, made about 1845, shows Poe wearing a chestnut-colored frockcoat (Deas, Portraits, p. 24).

“He dressed always in black, and with faultless taste and simplicity” (Weiss, p. 709).

“He was dressed in black, and his frock-coat was buttoned to the throat, where it met the black stock, then almost universally worn. Not a particle of white was visible. Coat, hat, boots and gloves had very evidently seen their best days, but so far as mending and brushing go, everything had been done apparently, to make them presentable. On most men his clothes would have looked shabby and seedy, but there was something about this man that prevented one from criticizing his garments, and the details I have mentioned were only recalled afterwards. ... Gentleman was written all over him” (J. H. B. Latrobe, quoted in S. S. Rice, A Memorial Volume, 1875, p. 60).

“I never saw him in any dress which was not fashionably neat with some approximation to elegance. Indeed, I often wondered how he could contrive to equip himself so handsomely, considering that his pecuniary resources were generally scanty and precarious enough” (Lambert A. Wilmer, Our Press Gang, 1860, excerpts reprinted in T. O. Mabbott, ed., Merlin, Together with Recollections of Edgar A. Poe, New York: Scholars’ Facsimiles & Reprints, 1941, p. 30).

T. D. English recalled in 1896 meeting Poe in the offices of Burton's gentleman's magazine: “I was favorably impressed with the appearance and manner of the author. He was clad in a plain and rather worn suit of black which was carefully brushed, and his linen was especially notable for its cleanliness” (The Poe Log, p. 263).

John R. Thompson, “He was dressed with perfect neatness; but one could see signs of poverty in the well-worn clothes, though his manner betrayed no consciousness of the fact. ...” (Quoted in The Poe Log, p. 749).

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “He always wore a black frock-coat buttoned up, with a cadet or military collar, and a black cravat tied in a loose knot. He did not follow fashions, but had a style of his own. His was a loose way of dressing, as if he didn't care” (Van Cleef, Poe's Mary, p. 636).

Chivers says, “In dress he was remarkably neat and tidy, and, had his means permitted, he, no doubt, would have prided himself in his neatness. This was the result rather of his proficiency in the true knowledge of the Aesthetics of dress, than in any foppish admiration which he might have entertained for what may be called finery.When I first became acquainted with him, he used to carry a crooked-headed hickory walking-cane in his hand whenever we went out to walk. ... This he flourished, as he walked, with considerable grace — particularly so when compared with a man who had never been in the habit of carrying a cane” (Chivers Life of Poe, p. 53).

Didier says, “Poe always dressed with extreme elegance and in perfect taste; he generally wore gray clothes, a loose black cravat, and turn-down collar” (Didier, p. 126).

Lydia Hart Garrigues recalled Poe in 1843. “He wore a spanish cloak; they, at that time, were much used instead of overcoats.” (Phillips, p. 827. Also The Poe Log, p. 445).

Basil C. Gildersleeve recalled “Poe himself I saw and heard in Richmond during the last summer of his life. ... [He was] clad in black as was the fashion then — slender — erect — the subtle lines of his face fixed in meditation. I thought him wonderfully handsome, the mouth being the only weak point.” (Harrison, I, p. 316. Also The Poe Log, p. 822).

O. P Fitzgerald described his dress as “... with white linen coat and trousers, black velvet vest and broad Panama hat ...” (Harrison, p. 316. Also The Poe Log, p. 821).

Descriptions of Poe's voice tend to emphasize the thrilling feelings over the listener than the qualities of the speaker. More detailed accounts give Poe as very theatrical or very restrained, prone to dramatic intonation or prone to quiet sonorities. It is, of course, a mistake to assume that Poe had any single style of presentation. Mabbott notes, “He [Poe] spoke with a slight Southern drawl. Hence he rhymed sister and vista, ha‘nted and enchanted. ... Poe did not drop the final letter of words like hunting“ (Mabbott, Poems, 1969, p. xxv).

”... so good a talker was Poe, that he impressed himself and his wishes, even without words, upon those with whom he spoke. ... Poe's voice was melody itself. He always spoke low, even in a violent discussion, compelling his hearers to listen if they would know his opinion, his facts, fancies, or philosophy, or his weird imaginings. These last usually flowed from his pen, seldom from his tongue” (Mary Gove Nichols, Reminiscences of Edgar Allan Poe, 1863; reprinted, 1931, p. 8).

Mary Starr recalled in 1888, “His voice was pleasant and musical, but not deep” (Van Cleef, Poe's Mary, p. 636).

“His voice was soft, mellow, melodius, and rather more flexible than powerful. It was as musical as Apollo's Lute. ... When he read Poetry, his voice rolled over the rhythm of the verse like silver notes over golden sands — rather monotonously and flute-like — so that, it may be said that he rather cantilated than read. He made use of very little Art in his recitations — never uttering any declamatory tones, or using the lowest Theatrical emphasis, but the most modest, chaste and delicate delivery. From this it must be evident to every one that his Readings were not very effective. ... His reading of Lyrical Poetry was certainly very melodious and beautiful, but he lacked that well-attuned power of modulation in accent, emphasis and cadence, necessary to make either an Epic or Dramatic writing effective. ... His talk was not only truly Coleridgian — graphically melodious ... but transcendentally eloquent — much better than the very best of his prose writings. ...” (Chivers, pp. 62-63)

“Hour by hour have we listened to his [Poe's] delightful abstractions, poured forth in a voice so remarkable in the peculiarity of its intonation as to incline to the extraordinary in tone” (H. B. Hirst, “Edgar Allan Poe,” McMakin's Model American Courier, October 20, 1849. Reprinted by Ian Walker, Edgar Allan Poe: The Critical Heritage, p. 314.)

There are 13 authentic portraits of Poe known to have been done during his lifetime. All other visual depictions of Poe, paintings, engravings and statuary, appear to be based on individual or composites of these few portraits. (There is also a caricature silhouette by Felix O. C. Darley from Holden's Dollar Magazine, January 3, 1849. The caricature shows Poe as an Indian with a tomahawk, a reference to Poe's famously fierce style as a literary critic.)

• 8 Daguerreotypes (covering the period of about 1843-1849)
• 1 oil painting (by Samuel S. Osgood, about 1845)
• 2 watercolors (A. C. Smith, about 1844, and John A. McDougall, about 1846)
• 1 steel engraving (Graham's Magazine, 1844, based on the A. C. Smith watercolor)
• 1 woodcut (Philadelphia Saturday Museum, February 25 and March 4, 1843)

• The “McKee” Daguerreotype (before 1843)
• The Philadelphia Saturday Museum Woodcut (February 1843)
• The Graham's Magazine Engraving (1844)
• The “Daly” Daguerreotype (about 1847)
• The “Whitman” Daguerreotype (1848)
• The “Ultima Thule” Daguerreotype (1848)
• The “Stella” Daguerreotype (1849)
• The “Traylor” Daguerreotype (1849)
• F. O. C. Darley's Caricature (1849)
• John Sartain's Engraving (1850)

A very large number of portraits have been incorrectly identified as being Poe. Often, this error results from poor judgement, inadequate scholarship or unrestrained enthusiasm. In other instances, the error is caused by an intentional attempt to increase the value of a painting. After all, a portrait of some unknown sitter is far less marketable than one of as famous a person as Poe. Even today, auction houses are prone to describing any old painting of a young man with dark receding hair and a mustache as “possibly Edgar Allan Poe.”

• Howard, Francis, “On a Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe,” Anglo-Saxon Review, March 4, 1900, pp. 95-97. (Allegedly a portrait of Poe at age 19 by Henry Inman.)
• Phillips, Mary E., Edgar Allan Poe: The Man, 2 vols, Chicago: John C. Winston, Co., 1926. (Mrs. Phillips, always more than a bit cavalier in her judgements, includes several false portraits of Poe as if authentic, beginning with the frontispiece to volume I. Mrs. Phillips attributes this miniature oil painting to the same Henry Inman as mentioned by Howard Francis in the item above. Page 291 carries an “Early Portrait of Poe,” which is clearly not Poe at all. As with many other false portraits of Poe, this one is attributed, cautiously, to Robert M. Sully. On page 1376, Mrs. Phillips gives a portrait as being Poe “after 1847,” tentatively but ludicrously ascribed to S. S. Osgood. None of these portraits bear more than a passing resemblance to Poe. A portrait of Poe painted around 1868 by Oscar Halling, from the Thompson daguerreotype, is reproduced on page 641, but mistakenly dated as 1840.)
• Randall, David A., The J. K. Lilly Collection of Edgar Allan Poe: An Account of Its Formation, Bloomington: Lilly Library, 1964. (The frontispiece claims to be a full length view of Poe standing next to a chair. Although the resemblance is rather striking, it is clearly not Poe. The style of clothing probably dates it as at least a decade after Poe's death.)
• Shepherd, Lilian McG., “A New Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe,” Century Magazine, XCI, April 1916, pp. 906-907. (Allegedly a group portrait of Poe with some classmates from the University of Virginia.)