Images(2)

Smith Rescued by Pocahontas

DateProbably 1856-1870

OriginAmerica, Mid-Atlantic

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions30" x 35 1/4" (76.2 cm. x 89.5 cm.) unframed; 35 7/8" x 41" framed.

Credit LineGift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller

Object number1931.101.2,1

DescriptionJohn Smith shown tied with hands behind back, kneels with head on stone, Pocahontas kneels to right of him with her head on his. A white horse with a hand painted on his hind quarters stands behind them, his head hidden by an Indian standing at left. An Indian stands behind the white horse and leans on his hindquarters, with a second horse behind him. An Indian stands at far right and appears ready to raise a metal hatchet, while behind him in the background is a group of four Indians. Another Indian is in the background at far right, with a body of water beyond. Trees and bushes in background. Smith is in armor.Label TextThe familiar story of the rescue of Captain John Smith by Pocahontas, said to have occurred near Jamestown, Virginia, during an expedition to explore the upper waters of the Chickahominy River in December 1607, is the inspiration for this painting. Although the truth of this rescue has been doubted since the middle of the nineteenth century, there being no mention of it in Smith's True Relation of 1609, it has become one of the most famous romantic incidents in early American history.ProvenanceAnn Rector, Baltimore, Maryland; Edith Gregor Halpert, Downtown Gallery, New York, NY.; bought from Halpert April 8, 1931, by Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, by whom given to CWF in 1939.