Pharaoh's Army Marching by Field, Erastus Salisbury

Field, Erastus Salisbury · c. 1865/1880

Erastus Salisbury Field's 'Pharaoh's Army Marching,' created around 1872, is a vivid oil painting housed in a regional museum. It captures the 19th-century American fascination with historical pageantry and national identity.

Observe the vibrant red uniforms and banners, signaling power and ceremony. The massive stone columns and a distant temple-like building transport us to an imagined ancient Egypt. Look closer at the figures in white robes, likely representing priests or dignitaries, adding to the scene's gravitas.

Field, an American artist active from 1805 to 1900, employed robust impasto and vigorous brushwork to create a textured and dynamic composition. This work belongs to a genre of American historical canvases popular in the post-Civil War era, reflecting a longing for grand narratives.

What stories do these ancient scenes still tell us today?

Details

Red uniforms and banners signal immense power and ceremony.

Massive stone columns frame the scene, evoking ancient civilizations.

In the distance, a temple-like building reinforces an ancient Egyptian setting.

The bright, open sky provides a sense of atmosphere and vastness, contrasting with the dense activity below.

Transcript

This painter was fascinated by grand historical events. Red uniforms and banners signal immense power and ceremony. Massive stone columns frame the scene, evoking ancient civilizations. In the distance, a temple-like building reinforces an ancient Egyptian setting. Figures in white robes suggest priests or important citizens observing. It’s a 19th-century American vision of antiquity and authority.