John L. Dunmore
Hunting by Steam in Melville Bay, The Party After a Day's Sport Killing Six Polar Bears within the Twenty-Four Hours
Artist
John L. Dunmore (American, active 1865–1875)American, active 1865–1875
Artist
George P. Critcherson (American, 1823–1892)American, 1823–1892
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Hunting by Steam in Melville Bay, The Party After a Day's Sport Killing Six Polar Bears within the Twenty-Four Hours
Date1869
PlaceMelville Bay, Greenland
MediumAlbumen silver print from glass negative
DimensionsImage: 10 15/16 × 15 3/8 in. (27.8 × 39.1 cm)
Sheet: 10 15/16 × 15 3/8 in. (27.8 × 39.1 cm)
Mount: 19 1/4 × 24 5/16 in. (48.9 × 61.8 cm)
Sheet: 10 15/16 × 15 3/8 in. (27.8 × 39.1 cm)
Mount: 19 1/4 × 24 5/16 in. (48.9 × 61.8 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Isaac Arnold III, Robert T. Arnold, and Isaac Arnold, Jr. in memory of Paul W. Wallin at "One Great Night in November, 1987"
Object number87.270
Not on view
Explore Further
Department
PhotographyObject Type
When the painter William Bradford set out on his seventh
and final journey to the far north in the summer of 1869, he took along two photographers,
John Dunmore and George Critcherson of Boston, to record all that they
encountered and to produce photographs that could serve as studies for his paintings. August 7 was a sad day for the polar bears,
but provided the ship with a supply of meat and hunting trophies.
The pattern of rectangles visible on this print reflects
the pressure of smaller prints on nearby pages in The
Arctic Regions, Bradford’s book from which this photograph comes.
Provenance[Charles Isaacs Photographs, Inc., Malvern, Pennsylvania]; purchased by MFAH, 1987.
Exhibition History"Past/Present: Photography from the Permanent Collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, December 8, 1991–February 9, 1992.
"A Love Affair with Pictures: 25 Years of Collecting Photographs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, October 14–December 30, 2001.
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Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Printed in black, recto, lower center: No. 83. HUNTING BY STEAM IN MELVILLE BAY, THE PARTY AFTER A DAY’S SPORT KILLING SIX POLAR BEARS WITHIN THE TWENTY-FOUR HOURS.
[no verso inscriptions]
[no verso inscriptions]
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.
William Bradford
c. 1873
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