Image Not Available

The Brave at Home. No. 2.

Date1860-1865

MediumLithography; printer's ink and watercolor on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 12 1/8 x 9 1/8in. (30.8 x 23.2cm)
Sheet (height x width): 14 1/8 x 10 1/16in. (35.9 x 25.6cm)

Credit LineGift of Samuel St. John Morgan

DescriptionA young man wearing a military uniform stands in the interior of a room, apparently a parlor. He has a mustache and holds a cap in his right hand. A young woman at his left buckles his belt around his waist. She wears a dress decorated with ruching, ruffles, and undersleeves. She also wears pendant earrings, a brooch, and a snood. Several children stand around them. A girl in the right background leans on the back of a chair. A young boy in the right foreground holds the hilt of the man's sword in his right hand. A drum and drum sticks lie on the floor nearby. A second boy stands at the left holding a toy sword and scabbard. Both boys wear short jackets, knickerbockers, stockings, and shoes. The boy at the left also wears a cap with a tassel, perhaps in imitation of a Zouave uniform. An oval framed portrait of a military officer hangs on the wall. Striped wallpaper is on the wall. Diaper patterned tiles or a floorcloth is on the floor. Drapery is at the right.

Object number1950.202.32

InscribedOn recto, lithographed title beneath image, "THE BRAVE AT HOME. / NO. 2. / The wife who girds her husband's sword, / 'Mid little ones who weep or wonder, / And bravely speaks the cheering word, / What tho' her heart be rent asunder-- / Doomed nightly in her dreams to hear / The bolts of war around him rattle / Hath shed as sacred blood as e'er / Was poured upon the field of battle! / 688." Lower left, in pencil, "60".

On verso, upper left, in red ink, "835". In pencil: center right, "Dwr 28"; lower left, "Print / Box 14 #9 / #39"; lower right, accession number.NotesSubject Note: The poem, "The Brave at Home," was written by Thomas Buchanan Read (1822-1872), a poet and painter known for his patriotic subjects. (Finlay 8/22/2003)

Subject Note: The portrait on the wall, of General Winfield Scott, appears to be based on a Kellogg print, 1950.113.0. (Shortell, 8/2/2002)

Source Note: It has been suggested that the composition was inspired by photographs of General McClellan and his wife, and that the figure of the soldier is based on McClellan.

Subject Terms