ABSTRACT
No American president was more concerned about how he was portrayed than Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He shrouded himself in dozens of disguises, including Sphinx, Father, Doctor and Captain of the Ship of State. Material objects related to presidents and their campaigns have existed since the beginning of the republic, but especially since about the 1880s, when participation in electoral politics became relatively high. Material artifacts relating to FDR are preserved in several places. ”The Sphinx” is a good example of a focused representation of FDR that has a historical context and survived well after FDR’s death in the shape of souvenir iconography linking the president to a powerful and ancient symbol. A common representation of FDR during his lifetime was as a doctor: either Doctor New Deal or Doctor Win the-War. Perhaps the clearest example of an iconographic use of FDR in the material culture is as ship’s captain.
