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Shipwreck off Nantucket (Wreck off Nantucket after a Storm)

ca. 1860–61
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 774
On August 8, 1859, the whaling ship Nantucket ran aground during the night at Nashawena Island, Massachusetts, part of the Elizabeth Islands at the entrance to Vineyard Sound. The next day, Bradford left his studio in New Bedford to observe the scene in preparation for painting this large, epic depiction of the shipwreck. He had recently worked alongside Albert Van Beest, who had been trained in the tradition of Dutch marine painting, and the dramatic effect of heavy seas and tilting ship show the other artist’s influence. Bradford’s impressive knowledge of seagoing vessels, however, is seen in the careful delineation of the deck of the whaler and the small craft that surround it.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Shipwreck off Nantucket (Wreck off Nantucket after a Storm)
  • Artist: William Bradford (American, 1823–1892)
  • Date: ca. 1860–61
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 40 × 64 in. (101.6 × 162.6 cm)
    Framed: 55 7/8 × 79 1/2 × 6 1/4 in. (141.9 × 201.9 × 15.9 cm)
  • Credit Line: Purchase, John Osgood and Elizabeth Amis Cameron Blanchard Memorial Fund, Fosburgh Fund Inc. Gift, and Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1971
  • Object Number: 1971.192
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

More Artwork

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The Arctic Regions. Illustrated with Photographs Taken on an Expedition to Greenland by William Bradford. With Descriptive Narrative by the Artist.
Multiple artists/makers
1873
The Arctic Regions. Illustrated with Photographs Taken on an Expedition to Greenland by William Bradford. With Descriptive Narrative by the Artist.
Multiple artists/makers
1873
Off Greenland—Whaler Seeking Open Water, William Bradford American, Oil on canvas, American
Off Greenland—Whaler Seeking Open Water
William Bradford
An Incident of Whaling, William Bradford American, Oil on canvas, American
An Incident of Whaling
William Bradford
1880s
An Arctic Summer: Boring Through the Pack in Melville Bay, William Bradford American, Oil on canvas, American
An Arctic Summer: Boring Through the Pack in Melville Bay
William Bradford
1871

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