Indian Tobacco Shop Sign [reverse, Indian facing right]
second half 19th century
![Indian Tobacco Shop Sign [reverse, Indian facing right] by American 19th Century](https://images.artheonmuseum.org/nga/thumb/indian-tobacco-shop-sign-reverse-indian-facing-nga-59927.webp)
Medium
oil on wood
Dimensions
overall: 136.4 x 57.8 cm (53 11/16 x 22 3/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CAB
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch
Accession Number
1980.62.33.b
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th American roadside commerce with this *Indian Tobacco Shop Sign [reverse, Indian facing right]* Created by an anonymous American artist in the second half the 1800s, this double-sided wooden panel measures an impressive 136.4 x 57.8 cm (53 11/16 x 22 3/4 in.), for catching the eye of passing trade. Painted in oil on wood—a sturdy medium ideal for enduring the elements—this reverse view features a Native American figure facing right, likely part of a promotional display for a tobacco vendor. Shop signs like this were essential vernacular art in bustling Ameri...
About the Artist
American 19th Century
The artist cataloged as "American, 19th Century" represents a collective of unidentified painters active in the United States during the nineteenth century, with 380 known artworks preserved in this virtual museum's collection. These works span a diverse array of genres typical of the era, including portraits, landscapes, still lifes, and genre scenes, reflecting the burgeoning artistic output of ...