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Boston Harbor

Boston Harbor

(American, 1798–1835)
1835
Medium/TechniqueOil on panel
Dimensions52.07 x 71.44 cm (20 1/2 x 28 1/8 in.)
Credit LineGift of Martha C. Karolik for the M. and M. Karolik Collection of American Paintings, 1815–1865
Accession number47.1240
On View
Not on view
ClassificationsPaintings
Collections
Description
Blunt captured a rare event-the partial freezing of Boston Harbor. Ice was a serious hazard to shipping; in the distance a line of men pull a ship across the frozen water to get it to its destination. An inscription on the back of the painting locates the scene one mile below Boston's Castle Island, facing east.
InscriptionsReverse, before fading: Boston Harbour Jany 12th 1835 I mile below the Castle looking to the East J S Blunt
ProvenanceThe artist; Louis Joseph Auction, Boston, 1945; with Charles D. Childs, Boston, 1945; to Maxim Karolik, Newport, R.I., 1945; to MFA, 1947, gift of Martha C. (Mrs. Maxim) Karolik.