Print of docked ships with young boy in foreground
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

In the foreground of this print, a young boy in a collared shirt and cap sits aboard a small boat. Behind him, more boats are docked in the water next to the portion of dry land at background left. Several industrial-looking brick and stone buildings rise up above the docks. The left-most building has signs with a business name near the roof. In the distance, many larger sailboats with float on the water. Their sails are folded up, and rigging ropes extend from their masts. The lines in this print are crisp and dark, creating a very clear, defined image.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2005.273
People
James Abbott McNeill Whistler, American (Lowell, MA 1834 - 1903 London, England)
Title
Eagle Wharf
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
1859
Culture
American
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/12478

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Etching and drypoint printed in black ink on thin laid japan paper
Technique
Etching
Dimensions
plate: 13.7 x 21.3 cm (5 3/8 x 8 3/8 in.)
sheet: 20.3 x 27.9 cm (8 x 11 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • Signed: lower center in plate: "Whistler 1859"
  • inscription: etched into plate at upper left: IYZACWHITLWY&Co W.B.BROWN/SAIL MAKER/SHIP OWNER
  • inscription: lower center, printed in plate: Whistler. 1859.

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

State
only state
Standard Reference Number
Kennedy 41, Glasgow 50

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Patricia Cornwell
Accession Year
2005
Object Number
2005.273
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Emma Chambers, An Indolent and Blundering Art?: The Etching Revival and the Redefinition of Etching in England, 1838-1892, Ashgate Publishing (Aldershot, England, 1999), repr. as fig. 5.5 on p. 138 [not Harvard impression; related bibliography]

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu