Cyrus Durand

Cyrus Durand was a technical draftsman and engraver active during the early decades of the 19th century, specifically documented between 1800 and 1819. His body of work primarily concerns the highly specialized area of security printing and ornamental design for currency production.

Durand’s output demonstrates a mastery of complex lathe work and mechanical drafting necessary for producing anti-counterfeiting features on banknotes. Fifteen works attributed to the artist, comprising fourteen prints and one drawing, are preserved in museum collections, including important examples held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These pieces provide primary source insight into the techniques used to secure early American currency.

His documented works detail both the mechanical components and the resulting aesthetic designs utilized in printing. Key examples include the technical diagram Stylus of a Machine Used for Engraving Bank notes, which highlights the engineering focus of his practice. Other prints showcase intricate security features, such as Banknote motif: Five oval or circular ornamental lathe work designs, one containing the word ten and Banknote motif: a circular lathe work design composed out of the repetition of the words "Five thousand dollars".

These documents, emphasizing detail and precision, are preserved today as museum-quality examples of early 19th-century industrial artistry. Due to their age, many Cyrus Durand prints reside within the public domain, often available as downloadable artwork for scholarly review.