Slaughter Pen, Foot of Round Top, Gettysburg
1863
One of the most sobering images in Gardner's album, this photograph was taken just days after the pivotal Battle of Gettysburg, showing the rocky terrain where intense fighting occurred. The albumen print's sharp detail and somber composition helped bring the war's brutal reality to civilians on the home front.
- Medium
- Albumen print, pl. 44 from the album "Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War, vol. 1" (1866)
- Location
- Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Spotted works by Timothy O'Sullivan
Artists in conversation
Alexander Gardner
American (Scottish-born) · b. 1821
Gardner was O'Sullivan's direct collaborator and employer during the Civil War, producing albumen prints of the same Gettysburg battlefield with the same documentary purpose and somber sepia toned aesthetic. His work shares the identical technical approach, historical subject matter, and unflinching witness to the war's aftermath.
Mathew Brady
American · b. 1822
Brady pioneered Civil War documentary photography using the same albumen print process to capture battlefield landscapes and the brutal realities of war for a civilian audience. His photographs share the same nineteenth century photographic technique, historical gravitas, and somber documentary tone as this Gettysburg image.
George Barnard
American · b. 1819
Barnard created landmark albumen print documentation of Civil War battle sites and their rocky or scarred landscapes, most notably in his series on Sherman's campaign. His photographs share the same sharp detail, sepia toned quality, and powerful use of terrain to convey the weight of historical violence.
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