[1] Benjamin Altman was born on July 12, 1840,[2] the son of Bavarian Jews who emigrated to America in 1835 and opened a small store on Attorney Street in New York City.

In 1877, a large storefront opened on Sixth Avenue; dubbed the "Palace of Trade" for its lavish architecture, Altman's store was one of the first to display clothing for different ages in different areas.

Shortly before his death on October 7, 1913,[4] he founded the Altman Foundation, a charity to support educational institutions in New York City.

[5] Benjamin Altman was an avid collector of Rembrandt paintings and Oriental porcelain, much of which he acquired through his friend, art dealer Henry J. Duveen.

He first completed a 50 x 40 (inch) portrait of Altman seated in his gallery with a Rembrandt behind him and a Chinese vase on a table beside him, but the Metropolitan Museum of Art, for whom this had been painted, chose another portrait of Altman by Ellen Emmet Rand also made from a photograph, and Müller-Ury's larger work went to the Foundation offices; it has since disappeared.