Collection Highlights
Framed leaves from Abraham Lincoln's bier
Date:
1865
Object Number:
1947.47
Medium:
Albumen photograph, plant material, ink, silk ribbon, wood gilding
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Museum Collections
Luce Center
Noah's ark
Object Number:
1956.101
Date:
1850-1900
Medium:
Wood, paint
Dimensions:
Overall (ark): 18 x 9 x 31 in. (45.7 x 22.9 x 78.7 cm)
Ark animals variable
Description:
Wooden Noah's ark; brown painted hull surmounted by building with peaked roof and sliding side; building painted with blue walls, red roof, and features such as windows and doors; fruit and flower border below roof; hollow ark holds carved polychrome animals and Noah's family (6 figures).
Gallery Label:
In nineteenth century America, Noah's arks were popular "Sunday toys," that is, playthings with moral or religious themes that were deemed appropriate for the Sabbath. Most of the arks found in American homes were made in small villages in the Erzgebirge region of Germany. Highly organized cottage industries took advantage of the raw materials provided by the region's deep forests to produce huge quantities of Noah's arks and other wooden and papier mâché toys.
Bibliography:
Weinstein, Amy A. "Children's toys." The Magazine Antiques 167 (2005): 188-193.
Credit Line:
Gift of Katharine Prentis Murphy
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.
