The Sale of the Pet Lamb
This sentimental rural scene shows a man in a cottage doorway talking to a woman who holds a baby, as another child clings to her and wipes away tears. In the yard at right, four children surround a beloved pet lamb which their widowed mother has decided to sell. The image is accompanied by a verse that explains what is happening.
The New York firm of Currier & Ives grew from a printing business established by Nathaniel Currier (1813–1888) in 1835. Expansion led, in 1857, to a partnership with his brother Charles's brother-in-law, James Merritt Ives (1824–1895). The firm operated until 1907, lithographing over 4,000 subjects for distribution across America and Europe with popular categories including landscape, marines, natural history, genre, caricatures, portraits, history and foreign views. Until the 1880s, images were printed in monochrome, then hand-colored by women who worked for the company at home. Here, the image derives from a British engraving by Reynolds based on a painting by Collins.
The New York firm of Currier & Ives grew from a printing business established by Nathaniel Currier (1813–1888) in 1835. Expansion led, in 1857, to a partnership with his brother Charles's brother-in-law, James Merritt Ives (1824–1895). The firm operated until 1907, lithographing over 4,000 subjects for distribution across America and Europe with popular categories including landscape, marines, natural history, genre, caricatures, portraits, history and foreign views. Until the 1880s, images were printed in monochrome, then hand-colored by women who worked for the company at home. Here, the image derives from a British engraving by Reynolds based on a painting by Collins.
Artwork Details
- Title: The Sale of the Pet Lamb
- Artist: Otto Knirsch (American, born Dresden, Germany, active 1853–67 died Hoboken, New Jersey)
- Engraver: After an engraving by Samuel William Reynolds, the younger (British, London 1794–1872 Feltham Hill, Middlesex)
- Artist: After a painting by William John Thomas Collins (British, London 1788–1847 London)
- Publisher: Currier & Ives (American, active New York, 1857–1907)
- Date: 1857
- Medium: Hand-colored lithograph
- Dimensions: Image: 15 1/4 × 19 3/8 in. (38.8 × 49.2 cm)
Image with text: 16 3/4 × 19 3/8 in. (42.5 × 49.2 cm)
Sheet: 19 11/16 × 23 11/16 in. (50 × 60.1 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Gift of A. S. Colgate, 1952
- Object Number: 52.520.14
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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