Adolphe Jean Baptiste Bayot
Battle of Cerro Gordo

Public Domain

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Artist Adolphe Jean Baptiste BayotFrench, 1810–1866

Artistafter Carl Nebel German, 1805–1855

PrinterPrinted by Rose Joseph LemercierFrench, 1803–1887

PublisherPublished by D. Appleton & CompanyNew York, founded 1831

PublisherPublished by George S. AppletonPhiladelphia

CultureAmerican

Titles

Battle of Cerro Gordo
from The War between the United States and Mexico Illustrated, Embracing Pictorial Drawings of All the Principal Conflicts, by Carl Nebel, Author of “A Picturesque and Archaeological Voyage in Mexico,” with a Description of Each Battle, by Geo. Wilkins Kendall, Author of “The Texan Santa Fé Expedition,” etc., etc.

Date1851

MediumLithograph with watercolor and gum arabic on wove paper

DimensionsImage: 11 × 16 9/16 in. (27.9 × 42.1 cm)
Sheet: 16 1/2 × 22 5/8 in. (41.9 × 57.5 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by John Bookout and Wallace S. Wilson in honor of Ann Bookout and Jeanie Kilroy Wilson at "One Great Night in November, 2015"

Object numberB.2015.13.5

Not on view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

PRINTS

DescriptionAfter capturing the Mexican city of Vera Cruz following a bombardment, amphibious assault, and siege, General Winfield Scott began to advance toward Mexico City, engaging troops led by Antonio López de Santa Anna at Cerro Gordo near Xalapa. Santa Anna’s troops had taken up a strong defensive position on the hill, but United States troops outflanked them and won a victory. This lithograph of the battle is part of a suite of twelve views of the Mexican-American War published in 1851 as The War Between the United States and Mexico, with a text by journalist George Wilkins Kendall. These hand-colored lithographs, with their attention to historical accuracy and beauty of composition, are considered the best depictions of the conflict. As narratives of battle, they are notable for their focus on large-scale actions rather than on individual acts of heroism.
ProvenanceJ. Dudley Thompson (1925–2010), Santa Barbara, California; Estate of J. Dudley Thompson; consigned to [Dorothy Sloan—Rare Books, Austin, Texas, auction 24, The Mexican-American War Collection of J. Dudley Thompson]; purchased by MFAH, 2015.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Recto: Inscribed in tan printed ink, below plate left: C. Nebel fecit.

Inscribed in tan printed ink, below plate center: Battle of Cerro = gordo / [cursive]

Inscribed in tan printed ink, below plate right: Bayot lith.

Recto: Stamp in ink, in plate, bottom left corner: ACCORDING TO ACT OF CONGRESS / [encircled]

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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