"Stages of Man"

DateProbably 1815-1835

MediumWatercolor and ink on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Support: 13 3/16 x 18 5/8in. (33.5 x 47.3cm) and Framed: 17 x 22 1/4in.

Credit LineGift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller

Object number1939.301.3

DescriptionThe picture shows companion figures of man and woman from cradle to the grave. From ten to ninety years the figures are arranged on ascending and descending steps in the manner of the Currier print. The first and last stages are illustrated by two vignettes entitled "Infancy, Childhood" and "100 years old." Vignettes illustrating "Marrying" and "Dying" are in upper corners, and two round vignettes divided by sprays of flowers show "Christening" and "Burying."Label TextThe theme was popular in this country, as well as, in Europe. The source for this watercolor may have been a 19th century print. However, the figures are different in pose and feeling from those found in a typical American print, such as "Stages of Man's Life" by Nathaniel Currier.Mark(s)In ink above two center vignettes are "Christning" and "Burying," and below the images in the four corner blocks are "Infancy" and "Childhood," "Marrying," "dying," and "100 Years old." Beginning at the left of the composition and creating an arch to the right are images labeled "10 Years old," "20 Years old," "30 Years old," "40 Years old," "50 Years old," "60 Years old," "70 Years old," "80 Years old," and "90 Years old." A penciled inscription on the back of the lower frame member is illegible.ProvenanceFound in Leighton's Tavern
Found in New York City; Edith Gregor Halpert (Downtown Gallery, New York, NY); Abby Aldrich Rockefeller; given to The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation in 1939.