Enlistment of Sickles' Brigade, New York (from Confederate War Etchings)

Art Historical Context

**Enlistment of Sickles' Brigade, New York** is a poignant etching by Adalbert John Volck, part of his clandestine series *Confederate War Etchings* created between 1861 and 1863 amid the American Civil War. Volck, a Bavarian-born dentist living in Baltimore—a border city teeming with divided loyalties—produced these works as pro-Southern propaganda. Secretly printed under pseudonyms to evade Union authorities, the series captured Southern perspectives on the conflict through sharp, satirical imagery, making it a rare artifact of Confederate sentiment from Northern soil. This small etching (image 4¾ × 7⅞ in.) depicts the chaotic enlistment of Union General Daniel Sickles' New York Brigade, the Excelsior Brigade, amid a bustling crowd of men, women, and even dogs. The scene evokes the fervor and frenzy of early war recruitment in New York City, likely with Volck's ironic twist highlighting Northern disarray or misplaced zeal. Etching's intricate technique—acid biting into metal plates for fine, expressive lines—allowed Volck to convey dynamic energy and subtle critique in a reproducible format, ideal for underground distribution. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this work underscores the war's cultural divides, blending artistry with political dissent. It invites visitors to ponder how prints like these fueled passions on both sides, preserving a gritty snapshot of 1860s America.

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...