Ferry on the Big Blue, Kansas (Landers Expedition)

1859

Bierstadt Brothers

Associated Names
Charles Bierstadt

Artist, American, born Prussia, 1819 - 1903

Edward Bierstadt

Artist, American, born Prussia, 1824 - 1906

The image displays a ferry scene captured in a split or stereoscopic view, showing a tranquil moment at the Big Blue in Kansas. The viewer's perspective is from the riverbank, looking across a body of water toward a ferry in transit. The horizon is positioned in the upper third of the scene where the land meets the sky, and trees can be seen along the riverbank and rising toward the horizon. The ferry carries a horse-drawn covered wagon, with several figures and animals visible aboard, and it is tethered by ropes running across the river. The color palette is monochrome, with various shades of gray, as this is a black-and-white photograph, highlighting the diffused light and reflective surface of the water. Trees line the banks, with their leaves and branches creating a gentle framing around the ferry, while their reflections dance subtly in the water.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    stereoscopic glass transparency

  • Credit Line

    Pepita Milmore Memorial Fund

  • Dimensions

    image (each): 6.75 × 6.75 cm (2 11/16 × 2 11/16 in.)
    plate: 8.4 × 17.4 cm (3 5/16 × 6 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2017.79.1


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Russell Norton, New Haven, CT; NGA purchase, 2017.

Associated Names

Inscriptions

bottom left transparent in negative: 91 Ferry on the Big Blue, Kansas.; bottom right printed in gold ink: BIERSTADT BROS’, PHOTOGRAPHERS, N. BEDFORD, MASS.


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