Skip Navigation

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy'

Eastman Johnson

American Art

Eastman Johnson drew his inspiration for this Civil War picture from an incident that reportedly occurred during the Battle of Antietam (1862) in which an injured drummer boy asked a comrade to carry him so that he could continue drumming his unit forward. The emblematic image of a heroic youth literally rising above the chaos of the battlefield resonated deeply with Northern audiences both during and after the war. Johnson’s initial drawing of the subject was exhibited in 1864 to foster support for the army, and the finished painting of 1871—for which this work is a preparatory study—helped to commemorate the hope and sacrifice of the Union effort. In this study, the loose brushwork, bright highlights, and lack of detail powerfully evoke the experience of battle—the steady drum beat, the smoke-filled air, and the drama of life and death.
MEDIUM Oil on laminated paperboard
DATES ca. 1864-1870
DIMENSIONS 21 1/2 × 16 3/4 in. (54.6 × 42.5 cm) frame: 27 1/2 × 22 3/4 × 2 3/4 in. (69.9 × 57.8 × 7 cm)  (show scale)
SIGNATURE Signed lower right: "E. J."
COLLECTIONS American Art
ACCESSION NUMBER 59.9
CREDIT LINE Dick S. Ramsay Fund
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION Eastman Johnson (American, 1824-1906). Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy', ca. 1864-1870. Oil on laminated paperboard, 21 1/2 × 16 3/4 in. (54.6 × 42.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 59.9 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 59.9_SL3.jpg)
IMAGE overall, 59.9_SL3.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
This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
RECORD COMPLETENESS
Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.