Art

Panorama of the Army of the Cumberland

The National Museum of American History is not an art museum. But works of art fill its collections and testify to the vital place of art in everyday American life. The ceramics collections hold hundreds of examples of American and European art glass and pottery. Fashion sketches, illustrations, and prints are part of the costume collections. Donations from ethnic and cultural communities include many homemade religious ornaments, paintings, and figures. The Harry T Peters "America on Stone" collection alone comprises some 1,700 color prints of scenes from the 1800s. The National Quilt Collection is art on fabric. And the tools of artists and artisans are part of the Museum's collections, too, in the form of printing plates, woodblock tools, photographic equipment, and potters' stamps, kilns, and wheels.

Date: 1900s

Chateau Thierry and the Valley

Pencil sketch (with other media) of the Valley of the Marne. Hills and Chateau Thierry in the background. Shell torn trees and building in foreground.Currently not on view
Description
Pencil sketch (with other media) of the Valley of the Marne. Hills and Chateau Thierry in the background. Shell torn trees and building in foreground.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-08
associated date
1917-1918
associated person
War Department
maker
Peixotto, Ernest Clifford
ID Number
AF.25818
catalog number
25818
accession number
64592

Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth, mid 19th Century

The obverse of this tooth has an image of a full rigged sailing ship stopped in the water, with most of the sails furled or rolled up.
Description
The obverse of this tooth has an image of a full rigged sailing ship stopped in the water, with most of the sails furled or rolled up. Alongside it is the carcass of a big whale, spinning around as the ship’s crew slice and hoist the ‘blanket pieces’ or strips of skin and body fat off the carcass in long sheets onto the deck. Once the long sheets are aboard, they’ll be cut into smaller pieces and tossed into a pot of boiling ‘blubber’ to render into whale oil. Above the scene in flowing script are the words “Ship Swift cutting a large whale.” There are a few registration pinholes within the image, but most of it is lightly drawn freehand. Engraved below the ship are the initials WHS, and in modern ink writing around the initials is written “149890. N.Y. M. Willis./U.S.A.” The number is the Smithsonian’s catalog number; the remainder is a notation by an earlier owner of the tooth. There is also a tag marked “39” stuck to the surface of the tooth in front of the ship’s bowsprit.
The reverse depicts a full-rigged ship plowing hard through heavy seas, with all sails flying. It is chasing a pair of whales lying on the water surface just ahead of its bow. The engraving is very fine but quite shallow on this side, and multiple pinholes indicate that a magazine drawing was laid over the polished tooth and pricked through for the image detail.
Scrimshaw began in the late 18th or early 19th century as the art of carving whale bone and ivory aboard whale ships. The crew on whalers had plenty of leisure time between sighting and chasing whales, and the hard parts of whales were readily available on voyages that could last up to four years.
In its simplest form, a tooth was removed from the lower jaw of a sperm whale and the surface was prepared by scraping and sanding until it was smooth. The easiest way to begin an etching was to smooth a print over the tooth, prick the outline of the image with a needle and then “connect-the-dots” once the paper was removed. This allowed even unskilled craftsmen to create fine carvings. Some sailors were skilled enough to etch their drawings freehand. After the lines were finished, they were filled in with lamp black or sometimes colored pigments.
Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or they could be useful, as in ivory napkin rings, corset busks (stiffeners), swifts for winding yarn or pie crimpers. The sailor’s hand-carved scrimshaw was then given to loved ones back on shore as souvenirs of the hard and lonely life aboard long and dangerous voyages.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 19th century
ID Number
DL.149890
catalog number
149890
accession number
27163

Town in German Alsace

Ink wash sketch on paper. The drawing depicts a street in the shadow of the buildings on the left side of the street. Two American soldiers are in the drawing: one in the far left foreground, and one walking in the center of the street. Women in the street behind the soldier.
Description
Ink wash sketch on paper. The drawing depicts a street in the shadow of the buildings on the left side of the street. Two American soldiers are in the drawing: one in the far left foreground, and one walking in the center of the street. Women in the street behind the soldier. A flag flies from one of the buildings in the background; it appears to be a French flag. The catalog card reads: "Town in German Alsace now in the American Zone and patrolled by American Military police. Massevaux in the Doller Valley."
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-05
associated person
War Department
artist
Peixotto, Ernest Clifford
ID Number
AF.25890
catalog number
25890
accession number
64592

Flying Field at Issoudun

A pencil and watercolor sketch on paper of Field Number One at Issoudun, France. The busy airfield depicted here was part of a large training complex for the U.S. Air Service during World War I.Currently not on view
Description
A pencil and watercolor sketch on paper of Field Number One at Issoudun, France. The busy airfield depicted here was part of a large training complex for the U.S. Air Service during World War I.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-08
associated date
1917-1918
associated person
War Department
artist
Smith, J. Andre
ID Number
AF.25984
catalog number
25984
accession number
64592

Carousel Horse

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1904-1909
maker
Dentzel, Gustav A.
ID Number
CL.66.257
accession number
261195
catalog number
66.257

Eagle Figure

This figure is made of painted wood. It is a figure of an eagle on shell with two American flags. The eagle faces left and is a companion piece to CL*68.435.Currently not on view
Description
This figure is made of painted wood. It is a figure of an eagle on shell with two American flags. The eagle faces left and is a companion piece to CL*68.435.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 19th century
ID Number
CL.68.434
accession number
260206
catalog number
68.434
collector/donor number
B-16

photograph

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca. 1900
ID Number
2012.0093.12
accession number
2012.0093
catalog number
2012.0093.12

Limoges plate

China painting swept across America in the late nineteenth century as one of the most prevalent decorative pottery techniques, especially among young women.
Description
China painting swept across America in the late nineteenth century as one of the most prevalent decorative pottery techniques, especially among young women. Considered a respectable form of work and creative outlet for women, china painting incorporated the element of hand craft that helped elevate standards of design during a period of mass production and industrialism. The technique of china painting could be done conveniently at home or in large pottery settings. Also known as “mineral painting,” after its materials, a china painter used enamels, low firing colors produced from various mineral-oxides, as a “painting” medium on pre-fired porcelain white porcelain, also known as blanks. These blank porcelain pieces were often imported from European countries, France and Germany in particular, and came in a variety of dinner ware forms and vases. The china painting technique of decorating porcelain was popularized in America by the highly influential Englishman, Edward Lycett. Trained as a potter in the English tradition at Spode pottery in Staffordshire, England, Lycett moved to America in 1861, where he almost immediately gained prestigious commissions for the White House and Tiffany & Co. His devotion to experimenting with materials and teaching pottery techniques across the country established Edward Lycett as the “pioneer of china painting in America” during his own lifetime. Ultimately, the creativity fostered by the china painting movement and the influence of Edward Lycett launched the American ceramic industry towards new and exciting avenues of decorative pottery.
This shallow plate began as a porcelain blank made in Limoges, France and exported to America in the late nineteenth-century. The blanks would be ordered by china painters to use as a surface for their painting, mostly as a leisurely activity for woman. Often, women would take lessons in china painting under the tutelage of professional china painters. This plate in particular was painted by Mrs. Ida Gentry Phillips Wheless while studying china painting under Marshall Fry in New York in 1895. Putting Fry’s lectures to use, Mrs. Wheless captured the delicate wistfulness of flowers blowing in the wind with her atmospheric background and whimsical white blooms of Queen Anne's lace.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c. 1895-1900
c. 1880-1900
maker
Delinieres & Co.
ID Number
CE.393786
catalog number
393786
accession number
211929

LAPID: CANCRor:

This conical-shaped, wooden drug jar has an ivory-colored shield that reads "LAPID:/CANCRor:" There is a rectangular paper label partially glued to the interior of the lid with a remnant of a small piece of yellow paper attached to it.
Description
This conical-shaped, wooden drug jar has an ivory-colored shield that reads "LAPID:/CANCRor:" There is a rectangular paper label partially glued to the interior of the lid with a remnant of a small piece of yellow paper attached to it. Containers 1991.0664.0889 through 892 appear to be from the same apothecary. The Deutsche Apotheken-Museum in Heidelberg, Germany has similar containers in their collection.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
ID Number
1991.0664.0891
accession number
1991.0664
catalog number
1991.0664.0891.01
1991.0664.0891.02

American Graves at Menil-la-Tour

Pencil and watercolor sketch on beige paper. The work depicts a cemetery with American graves at Ménil-la-Tour, France during World War I. There are several rows of graves, each marked with a cross.
Description
Pencil and watercolor sketch on beige paper. The work depicts a cemetery with American graves at Ménil-la-Tour, France during World War I. There are several rows of graves, each marked with a cross. The graves have small mounds of earth in front of them and wreaths and American flags are sketched on most of the mounds. A barbed wire fence borders the cemetery in the left of the drawing.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-06
associated date
1917-1918
associated person
War Department
artist
Smith, J. Andre
ID Number
AF.25914
catalog number
25914
accession number
64592

After the Battle of Charteves

Charcoal and ink wash sketch on white paper. The work depicts a damaged village in the aftermath of the Battle of Charteves. A shell-torn church and a number of smaller shell-torn buildings make up the village.
Description
Charcoal and ink wash sketch on white paper. The work depicts a damaged village in the aftermath of the Battle of Charteves. A shell-torn church and a number of smaller shell-torn buildings make up the village. A man, possibly a soldier, is in the street in the right foreground.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-07
associated date
1917-1918
associated person
War Department
artist
Peixotto, Ernest Clifford
ID Number
AF.25800
catalog number
25800
accession number
64592

Carousel Horse

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1904 - 1909
maker
Dentzel, Gustav A.
ID Number
CL.66.251
accession number
261195
catalog number
66.251

Minton parian porcelain pâte-sur-pâte covered vase

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
c. 1870-1904
date made
c. 1890
ID Number
CE.P-988ab
catalog number
P-988ab
accession number
225282

On the Edge of Belleau Wood

Charcoal and ink wash sketch on paper. The sketch depicts the edge of a wooded area, with timber fortifications in the center of the scene. Hills and small houses in the background.
Description
Charcoal and ink wash sketch on paper. The sketch depicts the edge of a wooded area, with timber fortifications in the center of the scene. Hills and small houses in the background. Belleau Wood was the scene of intense fighting between Allied soldiers and the German Army towards the end of the First World War.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-08
associated date
1917-1918
associated person
War Department
artist
Smith, J. Andre
ID Number
AF.26028
catalog number
26028
accession number
64592

The Railhead Dump at Ménil-la-Tour

A charcoal and watercolor sketch on brown paper mounted on a white matte paper sealed in the front with a glass sheet and backed by a plastic sheet wrapped in plastic wrap. The scene is of a railhead dump at Menil-la-Tour.
Description
A charcoal and watercolor sketch on brown paper mounted on a white matte paper sealed in the front with a glass sheet and backed by a plastic sheet wrapped in plastic wrap. The scene is of a railhead dump at Menil-la-Tour. Approximately nine men wearing blue, possibly French, are seen in the sketch all over the picture. Seven men are working around a tall pile of baled hay seen in the center of the sketch. Another two men are working on the right side, dragging a sheet. Several tall covered piles are seen besides the hay pile. Two flat cars are seen on the rails. Trash is seen in on the right side behind a lone tree. Behind the trash is a building.
The sketch is mostly colored, but it is not entirely sketched. The sky is colored blue. The tree and the grass are painted green. Other colors include light blue, red, and brown/pink for the ground.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-06
maker
Smith, J. Andre
ID Number
AF.26058
catalog number
26058
accession number
64592

Van Briggle Pottery vase

Before becoming an international phenomenon, the Arts and Crafts movement began with the ideas of British artisan William Morris (1834-1896) and writer John Ruskin (1819-1900).
Description
Before becoming an international phenomenon, the Arts and Crafts movement began with the ideas of British artisan William Morris (1834-1896) and writer John Ruskin (1819-1900). Morris and Ruskin believed that the growth of cities isolated urban workers and that mass production negatively affected artisan crafts. They proposed to solve these issues by returning to a medieval-inspired village model where everybody participated in a community lifestyle. In the United States, artisans adapted these ideas into the studio art pottery movement. Unlike their British counterparts, who often focused predominantly on social issues and therefore made objects that incorporated Gothic and Renaissance motifs, American craftsmen developed a cohesive and novel aesthetic.
Artus Van Briggle joined the Rookwood Pottery in 1887. He was so well-regarded by his employers that the company sent him to Europe to study pottery in 1893. There, like his patroness Maria Longworth Nichols Storer, Van Briggle encountered and became inspired by Chinese and Japanese ceramics. When tuberculosis forced Van Briggle to relocate to Colorado Springs in 1899, he formed his own eponymous pottery. Working with native Colorado clay, Van Briggle developed a matte glaze in a variety of tones that reflected his interest in Eastern ceramic wares.
Like its Grueby contemporaries, Van Briggle wares often combine stylized plant motifs with a smooth matte glaze in muted tones. This mint green vase with relief long-stemmed leaves exemplifies the iconic color and styling used by the pottery. In this example, the decorator first carved a thrown earthenware vase with the leaf motif, and later submerged the entire vessel in a prepared vat of glaze to achieve the thick, even coating typical of the ware. Van Briggle glazes feature an array of varied tones that include a tobacco yellow, a deep terra cotta red, and a myriad of greens and blues.
Artus Van Briggle joined the Rookwood Pottery in 1887. He was so well-regarded by his employers that the company sent him to Europe to study pottery in 1893. There, like his patroness Maria Longworth Nichols Storer, Van Briggle encountered and became inspired by Chinese and Japanese ceramics. When tuberculosis forced Van Briggle to relocate to Colorado Springs in 1899, he formed his own eponymous pottery. Working with native Colorado clay, Van Briggle developed a matte glaze in a variety of tones that reflected his interest in Eastern ceramic wares.
Like its Grueby contemporaries, Van Briggle wares often combine stylized plant motifs with a smooth matte glaze in muted tones. This mint green vase with relief long-stemmed leaves exemplifies the iconic color and styling used by the pottery. In this example, the decorator first carved a thrown earthenware vase with the leaf motif, and later submerged the entire vessel in a prepared vat of glaze to achieve the thick, even coating typical of the ware. Van Briggle glazes feature an array of varied tones that include a tobacco yellow, a deep terra cotta red, and a myriad of greens and blues.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1905
ID Number
CE.237970
catalog number
237970
accession number
45703

Portrait of Mlle. Bellamy

Signed pencil sketch, dated 1906Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Signed pencil sketch, dated 1906
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1906
original artist
Ferris, Stephen James
ID Number
GA.16686
catalog number
16686
accession number
119780

An Etching Society Outing

This light-hearted etching by Stephen Ferris, the Philadelphia Society of Etchers Outing in 1900, recalls the sixth such event held by the Society on the Neshaminy River near Doylestown, Pennsylvania.
Description
This light-hearted etching by Stephen Ferris, the Philadelphia Society of Etchers Outing in 1900, recalls the sixth such event held by the Society on the Neshaminy River near Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Etching, eating, and games were the outing’s major activities.
Ferris was a founding member of the Society, organized in 1880, and its first treasurer. Initially, it was an important source for information in the Philadelphia area about the newly revived technique of etching. The group met monthly during the summer for more than twenty years, offering occasions for its members to exchange prints.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900
graphic artist
Ferris, Stephen James
ID Number
GA.14476
accession number
94830
catalog number
14476

The Beggar

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1901
graphic artist
Ferris, Stephen James
ID Number
GA.14383.03
accession number
94830
catalog number
14383.03

The Market Place, Fere-En-Tardenois

Pencil, charcoal, and ink wash sketch on white paper. The sketch shows damaged buildings on the central square of Fère-en-Tardenois, France during World War I. The square is empty except for a truck, a group of soldiers carrying rifles, and a few people closer to the buildings.
Description
Pencil, charcoal, and ink wash sketch on white paper. The sketch shows damaged buildings on the central square of Fère-en-Tardenois, France during World War I. The square is empty except for a truck, a group of soldiers carrying rifles, and a few people closer to the buildings. The buildings are pock-marked with shell damage, and many of the roofs are so damaged that the rafters are showing.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-08
artist
Peixotto, Ernest Clifford
ID Number
AF.25880
catalog number
25880
accession number
64592

Refugees

A drawing in pencil signed “C. Schuessele” in purplish ink with what might be a stampCurrently not on view
Description (Brief)
A drawing in pencil signed “C. Schuessele” in purplish ink with what might be a stamp
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
original artist
Schussele, Christian
ID Number
GA.16631
catalog number
16631
accession number
119780

Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth, mid-19th Century

This small sperm whale tooth is carved on two sides, with the pictures apparently unrelated. On the obverse is a heavy woman standing in a theatrical entry, probably in some sort of operatic pose.
Description
This small sperm whale tooth is carved on two sides, with the pictures apparently unrelated. On the obverse is a heavy woman standing in a theatrical entry, probably in some sort of operatic pose. Her arms are crossed, holding a long shawl around her shoulders over a heavy, floor-length gown. Her eyes are more deeply engraved than other features and infilled with black paint, emphasizing her solemn gaze into an imaginary audience. The technique used by the artist is a combination of pinpricking and freehand carving, for an amateur effect.
Although the subject on the reverse also is a woman, the effect is completely different. Here, a beautiful, elegantly dressed young woman gazes demurely downwards at a closed fan in one hand. A large bustle adorns the back of her dress, which is made of rich, elegant patterned materials. Her hair is swept up in a bun, decorated and held up by a band with red highlights. Carved by the pinprick method, the original artwork used by the scrimshaw artist was probably out of a ladies’ fashion magazine of the period. The use of pinpricking for both linework and integrated detailing speaks to an experienced artist comfortable with his tools, techniques and subject matter.
Scrimshaw began in the late 18th or early 19th century as the art of carving whale bone and ivory aboard whale ships. The crew on whalers had plenty of leisure time between sighting and chasing whales, and the hard parts of whales were readily available on voyages that could last up to four years.
In its simplest form, a tooth was removed from the lower jaw of a sperm whale and the surface was prepared by scraping and sanding until it was smooth. The easiest way to begin an etching was to smooth a print over the tooth, prick the outline of the image with a needle and then “connect-the-dots” once the paper was removed. This allowed even unskilled craftsmen to create fine carvings. Some sailors were skilled enough to etch their drawings freehand. After the lines were finished, they were filled in with lamp black or sometimes colored pigments.
Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or they could be useful, as in ivory napkin rings, corset busks (stiffeners), swifts for winding yarn or pie crimpers. The sailor’s hand-carved scrimshaw was then given to loved ones back on shore as souvenirs of the hard and lonely life aboard long and dangerous voyages.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 19th century
ID Number
DL.374499
catalog number
374499
accession number
136263

Ruined Houses at Dieulourd

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918-6
associated date
1917 - 1918
associated person
War Department
Smith, J. Andre
artist
Smith, J. Andre
ID Number
AF.26042
catalog number
26042
accession number
64592

Indian Shop Figure

Made of carved wood with traces of paint. Standing figure, right hand holds a bundle of cigars. Figure is wearing a simplified, short-sleeved tunic, fringed trousers. Behind figure are stacked tobacco boxes. Simplified banded headdress.
Description (Brief)
Made of carved wood with traces of paint. Standing figure, right hand holds a bundle of cigars. Figure is wearing a simplified, short-sleeved tunic, fringed trousers. Behind figure are stacked tobacco boxes. Simplified banded headdress. Sheaf of tobacco leaves in left hand.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 19th century
ID Number
CL.65.1001
catalog number
65.1001
accession number
261195
collector/donor number
T-43

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