Which of these paintings should be considered a primary source?

A. Neither painting is a primary source.

Explanation:

Remember that a primary source is the one that provides first-hand account of events, practics, or conditions of the events or topics you want to study. This means they are created by people who was present in some way during the events. Primary sources are usually letters, diaries, photos, or newspapers articles. In this case these are both paintings showing us important events in history. In order to be primary sources they must have been painted by someone that was there at that moment. It is easy to discard The Scene at the signing of the Constitution because it was painted in 1940 and the Constitution was signed in 1787, the painter is representing that event based on information and his imagination. The Siege of Yorktown is representing an event that took place in 1781, it was painted in 1836. Although the dates are closer, the author Auguste Couder was not present at the historic event (he was just 8 years old), he painted it to commemorate the great moments of France’s military history.

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