Providential Deliverance of John Wesley from Fire Feb. 9th. 1709.

After a work byAfter a work by Henry Perlee Parker (British, 1795 - 1873)

PrinterPrinted by Kellogg & Comstock (American, 1850 - 1851)

PublisherPublished by Kellogg & Comstock (American, 1850 - 1851)

PublisherPublished by Ensign & Thayer (American, 1849 - 1850)

Date1850

MediumLithography; printer's ink and watercolor on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 8 1/16 x 12 3/8in. (20.5 x 31.4cm) Sheet (height x width): 10 x 14 1/16in. (25.4 x 35.7cm)

ClassificationsGraphics

Credit LineMuseum purchase

Object number1989.56.3

DescriptionFlames and smoke issue from the roof and upper story of a large house at the left. A man standing on the shoulders of another man pulls a boy in a nightshirt out of an open casement window with leaded glass panes. Other men support them and reach up to catch the boy. Most wears breeches, shirts, and vests. A man in a coat and hat runs from the left; another man and an open door leading to a stairway are behind him. In the center, a man holds a dog by the collar. Another man leads a mule from a barn or shed. A third man drives a cow or ox. A birdhouse or dovecote is on the thatched roof. Birds fly nearby. A boy has climbed a tree in the left foreground. Another man is drawing water from a pond. Boards, an ax, a shovel, a basin, and a potted plant appear to rest on the surface of the pond, presumably on ice. Women and children, some wearing nightclothes and some wrapped in what appear to be sheets or blankets, huddle together at the right. They are barefoot. A man in a shirt and breeches kneels beside them, his hands clasped in prayer. A dog and additional buildings are at the far right. A Gothic church with a square tower is in the right background. The moon is shining through a break in dense clouds overhead.

Collections

Kellogg Brothers Lithographs

NotesSource Note: The print is based on a painting by Henry Perlee Parker (1795-1873). The Kelloggs would have known this painting through an intermediary, such as an engraving by Samuel William Reynolds. An impression of this engraving and another engraving by an unknown engraver are both in the Davison Art Center at Wesleyan University. A lithograph by D. Wiest after the painting is dated 1866, later than the Kellogg lithograph and so cannot be a source for it. (Finlay 3/21/2004)

Subject Note: John Wesley (1703-1791) was the founder of Methodism. At the age of six, he was rescued from a fire that destroyed his father's parsonage. Wesleyan University was named for him. (Finlay 3/11/2004)

Status

Not on view