The Discoverer

Painting

-

Vermont Historical Society

Name/Title

The Discoverer

Entry/Object ID

2024.6.9

Description

Watercolor painting of "The Discoverer" by Jane Maria Hunt. The painting shows four classically robed female figures: Fortune, Hope, Science, and Faith; and a male figure, Columbus, in black coat and trousers. Columbus stands on a rock jutting into the sea while the four allegories are posed around him. The painting is on artist board, floated within a cream-colored mat, and enclosed in a simple wooden frame.

Type of Painting

Panel

Artwork Details

Medium

Watercolor

Subject

The Discoverer

Subject Person

Columbus, Christopher (1451-1506)

Context

In 1878 Vermont-born painter William Morris Hunt was commissioned to create two large, allegorical murals for the New York State House in Albany. Completed in 1879, the murals depicted "The Flight of Night" and "The Discoverer." The Flight of Night, utilizing imagery from a Persian poem, was meant to represent barbarism and ignorance leaving the American continent. The Discoverer, featuring Columbus surrounded by classical muses, represented the coming of European enlightenment and culture to America. Shortly after completion, a roof leak severely damaged the murals and permanent drop ceiling was installed that further destroyed the works. William Morris Hunt, one of the most famous artists of his day, suffered from severe depression and possibly other mental illness. His older sister, Jane Maria Hunt, served as his companion and support during the creation of these murals. A fine artist herself, she created the watercolor of his finished mural you see here. William died by drowning shortly after these murals were completed in a suspect suicide.

Acquisition

Accession

2024.6

Source or Donor

Brooks Memorial Library

Acquisition Method

Gift

Made/Created

Artist

Hunt, Jane Maria (1821-1907)

Date made

1878 - 1879

Place

City

Albany

County

Albany County

State/Province

New York

Country

United States of America

Continent

North America

Lexicon

Nomenclature 4.0

Nomenclature Secondary Object Term

Painting, Panel

Nomenclature Primary Object Term

Painting

Nomenclature Class

Art

Nomenclature Category

Category 08: Communication Objects

Dimensions

Dimension Description

Overall (to outer edges of frame)

Height

23 in

Width

28-3/4 in

Depth

1 in

Dimension Description

sight size of panel

Height

14-1/2 in

Width

20-3/4 in

Relationships

Related Publications

Publication

Exploration, Vision & Influence