Thayer, Abbott Handerson 1849–1921, American painter, b. Boston, studied in Paris with Gérôme and at the École des Beaux-Arts. Known as a painter of animals and of landscapes, he was also noted for his idealized figures of women, among these The Virgin (Freer Gall. of Art, Washington, D.C.), Caritas (Mus. of Fine Arts, Boston), and Young Woman (Metropolitan Mus.). He also worked in portraiture. With his son Gerald Thayer, he wrote Protective Coloration of the Animal Kingdom (1909), which was used in camouflaging in World War I.
