Noah's Ark1790–18148 1/2 × 14 × 9 1/4"Bone and wood with iron, pigment, paper and nailsGift of Jane, Steven, and Eric Lang and Jacqueline Loewe Fowler in memory of Robert Lang1999.14.101540152622Artist unidentifiedSculptureThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain. EnglandThree Dimensional WorkseMuseum - Collection HighlightsBy 1815, after the Napoleonic Wars and a series of revolutionary wars across Europe, thousands of French seamen (and some Dutch and Americans) were imprisoned in England, a number for more than a dozen years. Those prisoners of war with crafting skills carved objects from animal bones for the purpose of bartering. They carved with broken glass when knives were forbidden and assembled them with dye and glue made from boiled fish bones. These meticulous and elaborate sculptures found a ready market and were sold to passersby and visitors. There was a high demand for ship models made to scale and for ornamental designs like boxes and automatons with theater or guillotine scenes.
Noah’s Ark (1790–1814) has a different appeal: the square tower at the dock, the architectural details in the upper portion of the ark, and the windows recall the architecture of the Norman Cross prison camp near Peterborough, which closed in 1814. It has a crank that animates pairs of animals going into the vessel. Without a strict emphasis on the technical challenges such assemblages usually represent, this piece has dreamlike and spiritual qualities: by taking over the prison building, the religious ark is prepared for a symbolic escape. The bone used—likely from the animals that were given to the maker for meals, or recycled from the prison kitchen—reflects on the very experience of these war prisoners who saw death so close, transcending their miserable life conditions in detention, both economically and artistically.
Valérie Rousseau, “Noah’s Ark,” in Valérie Rousseau (ed.) Fever Within: The Art of Ronald Lockett / Once Something Has Lived It Can Never Really Die, exhibition brochure (New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2016).
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.orgSCULPTURENoah's Ark is a prime example of the intriguing bone art of nineteenth-century European prisoners of war. By 1815, after the end of the Napoleonic wars and a series of revolutionary wars that wreaked havoc across Europe, thousands of French seamen (and some Dutch and Americans) were imprisoned in England, some for more than a dozen years. During this period of confinement, friends and family of officers, who generally had privileges greater than those afforded to regular soldiers, were often allowed to supplement the prisons' inadequate rations of food, clothing, and amenities. For the ordinary seaman, however, bartering became a necessity. Many "ordinary" prisoners came from the French port city of Dieppe, a center of trade with the Ivory Coast that was known for ivory carving and ship modeling. Prisoners with carving skills found a ready market for items created from animal bones recycled from prison kitchens. In addition to bone, the only supplies needed were a knife, a small amount of dye, and glue made from boiled fish bones. Highest in demand were ships of varying sizes made to scale; guillotines, chess sets, boxes, playing cards, sewing implements, and mirror frames also were valued.
Noah's Ark resembles other works from a prisoner-of-war camp that had been located at Norman Cross, England, some of which are housed in the nearby Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery. This intricate and superbly crafted piece has an ingenious mechanism that resembles that on a carving in the Peterborough collection. Both feature a crank that animates the figures—when the crank on Noah's Ark is turned, the animal pairs move up a gangplank into the vessel. The elaborate, formal architectural details in the upper portion of the ark, the square tower at the dock, and the windows recall the architecture of the Norman Cross camp, which closed in 1814. Bone carving by prisoners is sometimes confused with scrimshaw, whale skeletal material carved and incised by sailors during long whaling ventures. The two handicrafts are separate, but they are similar in some ways and should be studied in tandem.
Lee Kogan, "Noah's Ark," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 30517901814 1999 14 1 By 1815, after the Napoleonic Wars and a series of revolutionary wars across Europe, thousands of French seamen (and some Dutch and Americans) were imprisoned in England, a number for more than a dozen years. Those prisoners of war with crafting skills carved objects from animal bones for the purpose of bartering. They carved with broken glass when knives were forbidden and assembled them with dye and glue made from boiled fish bones. These meticulous and elaborate sculptures found a ready market and were sold to passersby and visitors. There was a high demand for ship models made to scale and for ornamental designs like boxes and automatons with theater or guillotine scenes.
Noah’s Ark (1790–1814) has a different appeal: the square tower at the dock, the architectural details in the upper portion of the ark, and the windows recall the architecture of the Norman Cross prison camp near Peterborough, which closed in 1814. It has a crank that animates pairs of animals going into the vessel. Without a strict emphasis on the technical challenges such assemblages usually represent, this piece has dreamlike and spiritual qualities: by taking over the prison building, the religious ark is prepared for a symbolic escape. The bone used—likely from the animals that were given to the maker for meals, or recycled from the prison kitchen—reflects on the very experience of these war prisoners who saw death so close, transcending their miserable life conditions in detention, both economically and artistically.
Valérie Rousseau, “Noah’s Ark,” in Valérie Rousseau (ed.) Fever Within: The Art of Ronald Lockett / Once Something Has Lived It Can Never Really Die, exhibition brochure (New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2016).
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.orgSCULPTURENoah's Ark is a prime example of the intriguing bone art of nineteenth-century European prisoners of war. By 1815, after the end of the Napoleonic wars and a series of revolutionary wars that wreaked havoc across Europe, thousands of French seamen (and some Dutch and Americans) were imprisoned in England, some for more than a dozen years. During this period of confinement, friends and family of officers, who generally had privileges greater than those afforded to regular soldiers, were often allowed to supplement the prisons' inadequate rations of food, clothing, and amenities. For the ordinary seaman, however, bartering became a necessity. Many "ordinary" prisoners came from the French port city of Dieppe, a center of trade with the Ivory Coast that was known for ivory carving and ship modeling. Prisoners with carving skills found a ready market for items created from animal bones recycled from prison kitchens. In addition to bone, the only supplies needed were a knife, a small amount of dye, and glue made from boiled fish bones. Highest in demand were ships of varying sizes made to scale; guillotines, chess sets, boxes, playing cards, sewing implements, and mirror frames also were valued.
Noah's Ark resembles other works from a prisoner-of-war camp that had been located at Norman Cross, England, some of which are housed in the nearby Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery. This intricate and superbly crafted piece has an ingenious mechanism that resembles that on a carving in the Peterborough collection. Both feature a crank that animates the figures—when the crank on Noah's Ark is turned, the animal pairs move up a gangplank into the vessel. The elaborate, formal architectural details in the upper portion of the ark, the square tower at the dock, and the windows recall the architecture of the Norman Cross camp, which closed in 1814. Bone carving by prisoners is sometimes confused with scrimshaw, whale skeletal material carved and incised by sailors during long whaling ventures. The two handicrafts are separate, but they are similar in some ways and should be studied in tandem.
Lee Kogan, "Noah's Ark," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 305