Sale Overview
Christie’s Photographs department in New York is pleased to announce Photography of the Civil War: Property from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, an online auction open for bidding from 24 September – 7 October.
The Civil War was a crucible in which the individual elements of the young American Republic were melded into an indissoluble bond through the fire of conflict, ideals, hope and despair in equal measures. It was also the first conflict on American soil that was recorded through the lens, and as such is a watershed moment in the advancement and development of a uniquely American use and aesthetic for photography. The photographers who were called to document this national tragedy were deeply rooted in the pictorial landscape tradition, and it shows in their work.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds one of the largest and most celebrated collections of Civil War photographs at any public institution. The names associated with the documentation of that conflict—Mathew Brady, Alexander Gardner, Timothy O’Sullivan, George Barnard and others—are represented in their rich holdings of material.
The 168 albumen prints offered for sale here are duplicate prints from that collection. Nearly all were originally acquired by The Metropolitan in the 1930s from the storied collection of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS) in Massachusetts.
VIEWING
Viewing is by appointment only. Please click here to make a reservation.
2 Oct, 10am-5pm
3 Oct, 1pm-5pm
4 Oc, 10am-5pm
5 Oct, 10am-5pm