Photograph by Ed Pollard, Hasselblad H4D50 - 2011.

Burial Party, Cold Harbor, Virginia, April, 1865

Artist John Reekie (American, active 1860-1869)

Publisher Philp and Solomons, Washington, D.C. (American)

CultureAmerican

DateApril 1865

MediumAlbumen print

DimensionsOverall, Image: 6 3/4 x 8 7/8 in. (17.1 x 22.5 cm)
Overall, Support: 12 x 15 1/2 in. (30.5 x 39.4 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase and partial gift of Carol L. Kaufman and Stephen C. Lampl in memory of their parents Helen and Carl Lampl

Object number91.23.94

Not on view

DescriptionThis is an albumen print from GARDNER'S PHOTOGRAPHIC SKETCH BOOK OF THE WAR, Vol. 2.

Label TextUnknown American General Hancock and Division Cos. and Staff (Generals Barlow, Gibbon, and Birney), Cold Harbor, Virginia, June 11–12, 1864, 1864 Albumen print (photograph) Gift of David L. Hack and by exchange Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 98.32.150 John Reekie American, active 1860–1869 Burial Party, Cold Harbor, Virginia, April, 1865, 1865 Albumen print (photograph) Museum purchase and partial gift of Carol L. Kaufman and Stephen C. Lampl, in memory of their parents Helen and Carl Lampl 91.23.94 Exactly 150 years ago, between May 31 and June 12, 1864, the forces of Generals Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant fought at Cold Harbor, Virginia, less than 100 miles from here near Richmond. More than 15,000 Americans were killed or wounded in this violent confrontation. As photographic technology became more portable, artists followed these armies to make portraits and to record the aftermath of major battles. John Reekie’s photograph of the burial party collecting bones and remains was published in Alexander Gardner’s Photographic Sketch Book of the War (1865–66). Exhibition History"An Enduring Interest: The Photographs of Alexander Gardner", The Chrysler Museum, October 20, 1991-January 5, 1992. "The Civil War and American Art," Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C., November 16, 2012 - April 28, 2013; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, May 21 - September 2, 2013. Published ReferencesGARDNER'S PHOTOGRAPHIC SKETCH BOOK OF THE WAR, Vol. 2 (Washington, DC: Philp and Solomons, 1866). Eleanor Jones Harvey, _The Civil War and American Art_ (New Haven, CT: Smithsonian American Art Museum, in association with Yale University Press, 2012), 97.