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Several of the most celebrated and rarest nineteenth-century Philadelphia prints were the work of the Philadelphia lithographer P.S. Duval. From about 1835 until his retirement in 1869, Duval dominated the city's energetic printmaking scene publishing numerous lithographic portraits, periodical illustrations, and historical works. Duval was a prominent local citizen and a spirited businessman, being the only lithographer to be admitted to the city's Board of Trade before the Civil War. He was also an innovator, the first to adapt steam power to the running of all his presses, and one of the early enthusiasts for the possibilities of printing in color. A final key ingredient to Duval's success was his ability to attract the very best lithographic artists to work for him. James Queen, a native Philadelphian, was apprenticed as a lithographer to the firm of Lehman & Duval in 1835 when he was just fifteen. Queen soon became an accomplished lithographic artist, establishing himself as Duval's principal draftsman. He drew views, disasters, portraits, music covers, advertisements, certificates, illustrations and any other subject Duval needed. During the Civil War, when artists were in short supply, Duval wrote to a friend, "James Queen is still with us and is now one of the best artists in the country."
This is a wonderful and rare Philadelphia image that combines the talents of these two important printmakers. The subject is the Philadelphia Zouave Corps of volunteers. They are shown lined up, marching along in front of Independence Hall, shown with excellent detail in the background. The Philadelphia Zouave Corps was formed in 1860 and this print was probably issued about that time to be sold to volunteers and their families. Zouave volunteer regiments were formed during the Civil War, taking the name and uniform style of the original Zouaves, French infantry troops from North Africa. The uniforms were soon discarded as impractical and the Zouave regiments faded away after the war. This patriotic print would have been issued near the beginning of the war as a proud document of this volunteer company. $3,400
Lebreton. "Naval Engagement Between The U.S.S. "Kearsarge & the "Alabama" off Cherbourg, on Sunday 19th of June 1864." New York: W. Schauss & Paris: F. Sinnett, ca. 1864. 13 1/2 x 20 1/8. Lithograph, printed by Bacquet, Paris. Original hand color. Three short repaired tears, two just into image. Overall, very good condition and appearance.
A dramatic lithograph of the sinking of the Confederate ship Alabama by the Kearsarge. The Alabama was built for the Confederacy and sailed under Captain Raphael Semmes to threaten Northern commercial ships and run the Union blockade. The Alabama sunk, burned or captured 69 ships before she was cornered in June 1864 in Cherbourg harbor by Capt. John Winslow in the Kearsarge. Semmes challenged Winslow to a ship-to-ship duel, which lasted for about an hour before the Kearsarge began to sink and Semmes had to strike his colors. This print shows the Kearsarge, still firing as the Kearsarge begins to pass beneath the waves, her crew piling into lifeboats. A ship, probably the English ship Deerhound, is shown sailing just beyond the furious action. It was the Deerhound which actually rescued most of the survivors, taking them to England and thus allowing Semmes and most of his crew to escape imprisonment. This print was drawn by Lebreton, who lists himself as a designer of maps and marine charts. The print is labeled as "No. 14," indicating it was part of a larger series. $1,800
The Fight Between the Alabama and the Kearsarge off Cherbourg on the 19th of June 1864 Between 9 & 10 O'Clock in the Morning." Philadelphia: J. Childs, ca. 1864. 9 3/4 x 14. Lithograph. Original hand color. Very good condition.
Another print showing the battle between the Alabama and Kearsarge, this by a Philadelphia print pubilsher. A third ship is shown here as well, also probably the Deerhound. $1,200
Louis N. Rosenthal. "The Soldier's Dream of Home." Philadelphia: William Smith, 1864. Lithograph. 16 1/2 x 22 1/4. Repaired tears in margins and old stains at top just touching image. Otherwise, very good condition.
Louis N. Rosenthal was one of four brothers who emigrated from Poland around the middle of the century and worked in lithography in Philadelphia. The Civil War, not surprisingly, offered Louis and his brothers an opportunity of producing prints with a ready market. This stirring image shows a soldier sleeping in an encampment, over which flies the American flag, while dreaming of coming home to his family. A sad print which would have rung a familiar note with its intended audience of those who stayed at home and dreamed of their sons, husbands and fathers away at the front. $450
"The Union Soldier's Dream Of Home." New York, ca. 1864. Lithograph by Thomas & Eno, New York. 11 3/4 x 16 1/4. Several expertly repaired tears and marginal chipping; professionally conserved and lined. Overall, very good condition and fine appearance.
Another soldier's "Dream Of Home," this done by a New York lithographic firm. A very similar composition and appearance, indicating the popularity of the image. This print includes a poem about the soldier's dream, perhaps the inspiration for this and the previous print. $325
Max Rosenthal. "Battle of Antietam." Philadelphia: William Smith, 1865. Chromolithograph by M. Rosenthal. 22 3/4 x 27 1/2 (full sheet). Printed by L.N. Rosenthal. Folded down center. Excellent condition.
This heroic depiction shows the Union Army staff during the Battle of Antietam, September 1862, in which Gen. George McClellan turned back Gen. Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North. Known at the bloodiest single day of the war, the battle was a technical Union victory that provided Lincoln with political advantages centering on the Emancipation Proclamation and on warning the European powers away from alliance with the Confederacy. Published in the final year of the war, this dramatic print was an emotional presentation of a great victory remembered. $450
Christian Schussele. "How We Won The Battle." Philadelphia: Bradley & Co., 1865. 10 1/2 x 15 3/4. Engraving by John Sartain. Excellent condition.
After the Civil War, a market developed for prints of the war and its aftermath, many of them with a melancholy theme. This sentimental scene, with the legend, "To all who have sorrowed with, or suffered for, our beloved land in her hour of peril, this engraving is respectfully dedicated," is typical. A veteran narrates tales of the war, while his listeners range from the excited and fascinated children to the grieving widow. Besides providing a sentimental contrast in facial expressions, the print also shows much about the decorative arts in a middle class American home: furniture, textiles, a portrait of George Washington, a picture of a plant, a newspaper on the floor and an almanac tied to the window ledge, and best of all veteran's sword and campaign hat hung on the wall to be retired. $400
F[elix] O[ctavius] C[arr] Darley. N.A. "On the March to the Sea." Connecticut: L. Stebbins, 1868. Steel engraving by A.H. Ritchie. Hand coloring. 25 x 40 1/4 (image) plus 27 x 41 1/2 (full sheet). A vignette bust portrait of W.T. Sherman is in the lower title area. Attached to heavy board. Vertical fold that cracked the paper surface at center from top to bottom, but less obvious due to size and superb color.
Darley's dramatic and well drawn depiction of William Tecumseh Sherman's famous "March to the Sea" shows a scene from a campaign that had been a deciding factor in the closing days of the Civil War. Grant was facing stalemate on the eastern front, and as the battlefield deaths mounted, the reelection of Lincoln was in danger due to war weariness. Once Sherman's western army captured Atlanta, Lincoln's leadership of the Republican Party was no longer seriously questioned. An aggressive campaign to take Savannah as quickly as possible instead of Augusta or Charleston became the famous "March to the Sea" in which a wide swath of destruction was made to terrorize the southern citizens as well as eliminate the South's ability to wage war.
This picture focuses on Union troops destroying the railroad tracks with hearty expertise while around them buildings burn and freed slaves flee in terror. In the background a burning bridge is probably the Oconee River passage that was destroyed by Gen. Slocum prior to the convergence of the two main columns on Milledgeville. Such a depiction is one part of a controversy that carries on among historians to this day. The ferocity of Sherman's campaign has been condemned and defended. This print was issued at a time when Sherman was being considered as a presidential candidate for the election of 1868. His superior officer, U.S. Grant, gained the nomination, but this piece of historical Americana illustrates the strong emotions that supported Sherman at that time. Many still consider Sherman the very best strategist of the Civil War. Regional differences will always play a part in that consideration. $625
H.P. Simmons. "The Dying Soldier." NewYork: Thomas Kelly, 1870. Engraving by A. Turrell. 22 1/2 x 17 3/8. Good margins and very good condition.
A beautifully engraved, sentimental print issued shortly after the Civil War by historical print publisher Thomas Kelly. The impact of the war lasted well after the surrender at Appomattox, especially for those families who had lost a husband/father. In Victorian America mourning pictures were standard and this lovely image captures the sentiment that was expressed by these images. A dying soldier lies in the foreground, with a broken cannon nearby, while in the background is seen artillery firing across a battleground littered with other dead and dying troops. The main figure, whose cap is crowned with a cross, does not appear in great discomfort, lying by a clear stream and surrounded by bushes in bloom, with a few white flowers ornamenting his resting spot. He gazes on a small portrait of his family, which he wear on a chain around his neck, while in the clouds above is engraved a pictured of his family. The wife appears to sense her loved one's impending death, with one child reaching out to comfort his mother and an infant at her breast. In the background of this scene is a portrait of the soldier, proudly displayed on the wall. This print itself would later have been proudly, though sadly displayed in the homes of many grieving families. $650
Thure de Thulstrup. "Battle of Allatoona Pass." Boston: L. Prang, 1887. 15 x 21 7/8. Chromolithograph. With short repaired tear. Otherwise, very good condition.
A striking image that is one of the rare and important Civil War series issued by Louis Prang between 1886 and 1888. In the early 1880s, Century Magazine had issued a very popular work entitled Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, and the Kurz & Allison firm had issued a large chromolithograph of Gettysburg. In response to these, Louis Prang decided to issue a portfolio of 18 elaborate chromolithographs of important battles of the war. Prang termed his prints "aquarelle facsimile prints" to distinguish them from "mere" chromos. Prang claimed they were made by a "new and secret process", but primarily they were chromos done without any line work. They were based on watercolors commissioned by Prang and they were intended to be naturalistic and accurate, for Prang was aiming these prints for veterans and their descendants. Prang got testimonials on their accuracy from prominent veterans and he included detailed text on the battles involved. The prints were quite popular, helping to create a great surge in patriotic nostalgia about the war.
There were 18 prints in all: 6 of eastern battles; 6 of western battles; and 6 naval images. There was intended to be something for everyone, and Prang focused mostly on heroes who were still living at the time. The were issued either in a portfolio or separately for framing.. At first they were issued in parts over time, but eventually were packaged into three groups: East/West/Naval. These are not to be confused with the more common later Prang chromos, also issued by the American Lithographic Company. Not only are these larger and more finely produced, but they are much scarcer.
This image shows the battle over the railroad depot near Kenesaw Mountain. On October 5, 1864, the Confederates attacked the Union troops under Brig. General John M. Corse. He was instructed to "Hold fast. We are coming" by General Sherman, and Corse not only held his position, but launched a successful counterattack-the scene depicted here. $850
James E. Taylor. “Sherman’s Foragers on a Georgia Plantation.” Pencil and wash drawing signed at bottom right “James E. Taylor 1888.” 14 1/4 x 24 1/4. Probably drawn in New York. Excellent condition. Reproduced in Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, IV: p. 674.
During the American Civil War James Edward Taylor (1839-1901) was a battlefront artist working for Frank Leslie’s Magazine. He made a reputation for himself during the war and afterwards went west to continue doing illustrations of events and landscapes. He left Leslie’s in 1883 to become an independent illustrator and was soon after contacted by the publishers of The Century Company to provide scenes of the recent Civil War from his memories. A series of articles about the war had appeared in The Century Magazine and were very popular, so the editors decided to gather those articles and more along with vivid illustrations for a set of four volumes which became the classic Battles and Leaders of the Civil War.
This drawing was used to illustrate an article by Capt. Daniel Oakey of the Second Massachusetts Volunteers who wrote in the middle of an article entitled “Marching through Georgia and the Carolinas” that “Sometimes in the midday halt a stray pig that had cunningly evaded the foragers would venture forth in the belief of having escaped ‘the cruel war,’ and would find his error, alas! too late, by encountering our column.” (II: p. 675) The slaughter of the pig is the main focus, but Taylor also included pictures of other acts by foragers, a lovely vignette of slaves looking on with fright, and depictions of buildings that include a large cane press. There is much emotional history in this portrayal. This is a superb, historical illustration. $2,400
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