Philip Henry Sheridan
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Accession Number
NPG.85.152
Tags
Art Historical Context
This lithographic portrait of Philip Henry Sheridan, produced around 1865 by the renowned Currier & Ives Lith Company, captures the Union Army general at the height of the Civil War. Sheridan, depicted with his signature beard, mustache, and brass-adorned military uniform, embodies the era's heroic ideal of leadership. As a brigadier general, colonel, and major general, he rose rapidly through the ranks, symbolizing Union valor during pivotal campaigns. Currier & Ives, active from 1857 to 1907, specialized in affordable hand-colored lithographs that brought art to the masses. Their prints, of...