The Early Ploughman

in or before 1861

Samuel Palmer

Associated Names
Samuel Palmer

Artist, British, 1805 - 1881

The image is a landscape seen from a ground-level perspective, featuring a scene of pastoral life. The horizon is low, emphasizing the sky with expressive brushstrokes depicting clouds. A hill is on the left with a silhouette of what seems to be ruins or a small structure. The color palette is monochromatic with varying shades of sepia for light and shadow. Two oxen are working the land with a figure guiding them, and tall trees stand on the right with a lone figure nearby. The brushwork is detailed, capturing nature and human activity.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.
Not on view See artworks now on view

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 17.5 × 26.5 cm (6 7/8 × 10 7/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1980.45.1145

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Lister 1988, no. 9, State iv?/viii

Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

1985

  • Landscape Prints from the National Gallery's Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1985, no cat.

Bibliography

1968

  • Lister, Raymond. Samuel Palmer and His Etchings.New York: Watson-Gulptill, 1968.

1988

  • Lister, Raymond. Catalogue Raisonne of the Works of Samuel Palmer. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1988: no. 9, iv/ix?

Wikidata ID

Q65577178

You may be interested in

Loading Results