[Civil War Union Soldier with Rifle and Canteen, in Studio]
1861–65
![[Civil War Union Soldier with Rifle and Canteen, in Studio] by Unknown](https://images.artheonmuseum.org/met/ph/thumb/civil-war-union-soldier-with-rifle-and-canteen-in-299308.webp)
Medium
Ambrotype
Dimensions
Visible: 8.5 x 6.3 cm (3 3/8 x 2 1/2 in.), oval Passe-partout: 10.7 x 8.1 cm (4 3/16 x 3 3/16 in.) Frame: 16.1 x 13.4 cm (6 5/16 x 5 1/4 in.)
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Fund, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 2011
Accession Number
2011.475
Tags
Art Historical Context
This poignant ambrotype captures a Union soldier posed in a studio during the American Civil War (1861–65), rifle in hand and canteen at his side. The unknown sitter, dressed in his uniform, embodies the determination of the Northern forces amid a conflict that claimed over 600,000 lives. Such studio portraits were immensely popular, serving as cherished keepsakes for families—tiny windows into the human stories behind the battles of Gettysburg, Antietam, and beyond. Created using the ambrotype process—a wet-collodion technique on glass that produced a unique, one-of-a-kind positive image— th...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...