Counterfeit Confederate Notes Publicly Offered for Sale in the "City of Brotherly Love" (from Confederate War Etchings)

Art Historical Context

In the midst of the American Civil War1861–65), Adalbert Johnck, a Baltimore dentist ardent Confederate sympathizer, created this etching as part of his clandestine series *Confederate Warchings*. Produced between 1861 and 1863, the print satirically depicts counterfeit Confederate notes being openly sold in Philadelphia—the Union stronghold nicknamed the "City of Brotherly Love." scene underscores the economic sabotage of the era, where counterfeiting enemy currency was a covert weapon to undermine morale and finances, highlighting Northern opportunism from a Southern perspective. Volck's work captures men haggling over fake bills amid stacks of currency, blending sharp social commentary with intricate detail. As a skilled etcher, he employed intaglio printing—incising lines into a metal plate with acid—to achieve fine lines and rich tonal contrasts, ideal for small-scale propaganda that could be discreetly distributed. These etchings, often hidden in cigar boxes or books, evaded Union censorship and rallied Southern support. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this 4 3/4 x 6 3/8-inch image remains a poignant artifact of wartime intrigue, revealing how art fueled division in a fractured nation.

About the Artist

Adalbert John Volck · 1828–1912

Adalbert John Volck (1828–1912) led one of the more remarkable double lives in American art history. Born in Augsburg, Bavaria, he emigrated to the United States as a young man, eventually settling in Baltimore, where he built a distinguished career as a dentist. Yet beneath his professional respectability lay a fierce artistic talent and a passionate political identity that would find explosive e...