Bidspirit auction | ROSENTHAL, LOUIS N. The Soldier’s

ROSENTHAL, LOUIS N. The Soldier’s Dream of Home. Lithograph. 19 x 24 inches. Framed. Philadelphia, William Smith , 1864. “Many prints published in the North during the Civil War were marketed towards the families of soldiers, who would hang these in their homes to reassure themselves that they remained in the minds of their loved ones away at war. This particular 1864 lithograph features a Union soldier reclining against a rock, atop which is mounted an American flag. In the clouds above the soldier, his dream materializes for the viewer: he returns home, arms outstretched to his wife, parents, and young son. The slumbering soldier is kept warm by a nearby fire, and behind him, a group of his fellow fighters smoke and converse between two cannon, as they wait for the coming battle the next day. This piece was created by Louis N. and Max Rosenthal, two brothers born in Russian Poland. Louis studied art in Berlin and Max studie.d in Paris and both immigrated to the United States around 1850. They worked together in Philadelphia, producing lithographs, mezzotints, etchings, and portrait miniatures. William Smith, the publisher of the print, was based in Philadelphia and produced frames for paintings between 1856 and 1860. By 1860, he had expanded to selling and publishing prints and pictures.” (The National Museum of American History).