Nast's Illustrated Almanac

Art Historical Context

**Nast's Illustrated Almanac (1874)** Step the vibrant world of 19th-century American satire with *Nast's Illustrated Almanac*, compact 1874 publication by renowned political cartoonist Thomas Nast produced in collaboration with Harper & Brothers. Measuring just 8 1/16 x 5 11/16 inches, this wood-engraved illustrated book served as an annual almanac, calendars, forecasts, and commentary with Nast's signature biting humor. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, it was generously gifted by Nast's children—Thomas Nast Jr., Mabel Nast Crawford, and Cyril Nast—in 1933. Thomas Nast, often called the "father of the American cartoon," pioneered the use of illustrations to expose political corruption during the Gilded Age. By 1874, fresh from his crusades against New York City's Tammany Hall machine via *Harper's Weekly*, Nast filled this almanac with wood engravings likely skewering politicians and public figures—reflected in its "Men" tag. These images captured the era's tensions, from post-Civil War reconstruction to rising urban graft. Wood engraving, a key technique here, allowed for intricate, high-contrast details reproducible on a mass scale, making Nast's work accessible to everyday readers. This almanac exemplifies how cartoons shaped public opinion, blending art and activism in a pocket-sized format that remains a testament to Nast's enduring cultural punch.

About the Artist

Thomas Nast|Harper & Brothers · 1840–1902

Thomas Nast (1840–1902) was the most powerful political cartoonist in American history, an artist whose images shaped public opinion, toppled corrupt politicians, and gave enduring visual form to some of the most cherished symbols of American popular culture. Born in Landau, Germany, he emigrated with his family to New York as a child and received his artistic training at the National Academy of D...