Image Not Available

The Independent Gold Hunter on His Way to California.

Date1849-1850

MediumLithography; printer's ink and watercolor on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 12 7/16 x 8 1/2in. (31.6 x 21.6cm)
Sheet (height x width): 14 x 9 7/8in. (35.6 x 25.1cm)

Credit LineConnecticut Museum of Culture and History collection

DescriptionA bearded man is seen in profile, walking towards the right. He wears a coat, pants, square-framed eyeglasses, and high leather boots. On his head is a long-handled pot. He carries a long-handled frying pan or skillet over his right shoulder. From one end of the pan hang a string of sausages and a scale; from the other end hang a string of fish and a tea pot. Under his right arm, he carries a flat-ended shovel. Under his left arm is a pick. He carries a brass-studded suitcase in his left hand. His right coat pocket contains four large knives. A bottle is in his breast pocket. He is smoking a small cigar or cigarette. He is walking across a broad, grassy plain with low hills in the background. A wooden sign at the left reads: "To St. Louis -- 350 Miles. / To California. 1700 Ms."

Object number1996.177.50

InscribedOn recto, lithographed title beneath image, "THE INDEPENDENT GOLD HUNTER ON HIS WAY TO CALIFORNIA. / I NEITHER BORROW NOR LEND. / 370."

On verso, in pencil: upper left, "t 31 #12"; lower right, accession number.

Subject Terms