Walked Home on his Ear!

In this print, a stern woman (mother) uses her right hand to pinch the left ear of a boy (son), who grimaces in pain as they walk on a dirt path lined with grass towards the viewer. The woman (wearing a pink-checked pioneer bonnet, a steel blue-gray blouse, a cream-colored apron over a pink-checked long skirt) is striding firmly without easing up on pulling the boy by his ear; in her left hand, she holds a belt (a hint that the boy might be getting a beating shortly). The boy is shirtless, and with his right hand he is holding up his blue pants, in addition to gripping his gray hat and white shirt. Standing on the river bank In the right bckground, four naked boys laugh at the lad's misfortune at being caught swimming; the heads of two swimmers are in the water beyond. In the left background, a rowboat lies on the river bank. Across the river, hills are covered with vegetation. The title is imprinted in the bottom margin.


Nathaniel Currier, whose successful New York-based lithography firm began in 1835, produced thousands of prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life and its history. People eagerly acquired such lithographs featuring picturesque scenery, rural and city views, ships, railroads, portraits, hunting and fishing scenes, domestic life and numerous other subjects, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments. As the firm expanded, Nathaniel included his younger brother Charles in the business. In 1857, James Merritt Ives (the firm's accountant since 1852 and Charles's brother-in-law) was made a business partner; subsequently renamed Currier & Ives, the firm continued until 1907.