The "Sports" Who Lost their "Tin"

In this print, a group of seven downcast men and a horse (covered in a white blanket) walk from right to left, heading toward a stable after losing a race. In front of the horse are two Black (African American) grooms, who hold the horse's reins as they progress forward. One holds a green bucket and wears a red shirt, blue pants (with a red patch on his behind), and a brown cap; the other (partially obscured by the horses head) wears a brimmed brown hat and brown pants. Flanking the horse are two pairs of man, followed by a bearded workman (dressed in a pink shirt, blue pants and a gray cap) pulling a sulky. On the viewer's side of the horse, a despondant pouting man (the horse's owner?) wears a top hat, a blue jacket, gray vest and pants; behind him is the jockey (sporting a mustache) wearing a red/yellow visored cap, a short blue jacket, and gray-striped pants. Visible over the back of the horse are the heads of two men (possibly the horse trainer, and the sulky driver?); the bearded man in front wears a brown hat, while the other wears a top hat. In the right background, two men peer over a wooden fence to watch the group. The print's 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. The artist of this print is Thomas Worth, a prolific nineteenth-century illustrator who excelled at drawing horses and other subjects, many of which were made into lithographs published by Currier & Ives.