James Hamilton (American, 1819-1878). <em>Foundering</em>, 1863. Oil on canvas, 59 5/8 x 48 1/16 in. (151.5 x 122 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 55.139 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 55.139_acetate_bw.jpg)

James Hamilton (American, 1819-1878). Foundering, 1863. Oil on canvas, 59 5/8 x 48 1/16 in. (151.5 x 122 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 55.139 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 55.139_acetate_bw.jpg)

James Hamilton (American, 1819-1878). Foundering, 1863. Oil on canvas, 59 5/8 x 48 1/16 in. (151.5 x 122 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 55.139 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.55.139.jpg)

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

What is the name of this painting?

Hi! The painting in question is "Foundering" (1863) by James Hamilton. The title refers to the Confederate ship "foundering" (or sinking), and not just literally---the dramatic lighting and atmospheric effects (a trademark of Hamilton's Romantic style) elevate this specific ship to a wider symbol. It's almost anticipating the outcome of the American Civil War, and the defeat of the Confederacy.

Can you spot the Confederate flag on the mast? I love how it's almost obscured by the thick, bright, smears of paint. And it's being flown upside down, a sign of distress.

Wow thank you, it's amazing!

In the painting called “Foundering” by James Hamilton, can you tell us how many stripes there are in the flag at the top of the mast of the ship? We can’t count them because of the glare on the painting!

I only see three stripes on the flag, two red and one white and there is a field of blue in what would be the upper left corner (seen to the lower right in the painting because the flag is upside down as a signal of distress).

The flag is meant to recreate the Confederate Flag that was in use from 1861 to the end of the Civil War. It did indeed have three stripes and a star for every state in the Confederacy in the blue field. The seascape is emblematic of the Civil War itself, the foundering ship symbolic of the failure of the Confederate cause.

That’s what we thought! Thank you! Cool!

Foundering

James Hamilton

American Art

As in his painting The Last Days of Pompeii, on view nearby, here James Hamilton depicts human frailty in the face of nature’s awesome force. Under dramatic skies a foundering ship is tossed on stormy waves. A Confederate flag whips from the top of the mast (upside down to signal distress), making the image emblematic of the ongoing devastation of the U.S. Civil War and predictive of the South’s defeat.

ARTIST James Hamilton, American, 1819-1878

MEDIUM Oil on canvas

DATES 1863

DIMENSIONS 59 5/8 x 48 1/16 in. (151.5 x 122 cm) frame: 70 1/8 × 58 9/16 × 5 1/4 in. (178.1 × 148.7 × 13.3 cm) (show scale)

INSCRIPTIONS Inscribed verso: "Foundering' / Jas Hamilton / Philada 1863"

COLLECTIONS American Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 55.139

CREDIT LINE Dick S. Ramsay Fund

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION James Hamilton (American, 1819-1878). Foundering, 1863. Oil on canvas, 59 5/8 x 48 1/16 in. (151.5 x 122 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 55.139 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 55.139_acetate_bw.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 55.139_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

What is the name of this painting?

Can you spot the Confederate flag on the mast? I love how it's almost obscured by the thick, bright, smears of paint. And it's being flown upside down, a sign of distress.

Wow thank you, it's amazing!

That’s what we thought! Thank you! Cool!