(LOUISIANA) Arrest of Mardi Gras Masqueraders by the Police

Sale 2344 - Lot 161

Price Realized: $ 6,500

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Estimate: $ 2,000 - $ 3,000

(LOUISIANA.) Arrest of Mardi Gras Masqueraders by the Police of New Orleans. Pencil drawing, 8 3/4 x 9 3/4 inches, with manuscript pencil notes on verso; folds, marginal loss to three corners, short closed tear on upper edge. [New Orleans, LA, 17 February 1863]

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Additional Details

A wartime depiction of Mardi Gras revelers. A lengthy manuscript note on verso, apparently by the artist, tells the story: "Tuesday Feby 17th was Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday), a holiday devoted in years gone by to extensive masquerading by . . . the Mystic Krew of Komus. . . . Of course the war has put an end to the celebration in a great measure. Last year the Confederate authorities prohibited the proceedings entirely & this year the rain prevented the ridiculous turn out on the proper day, but many females, ambitious to disport themselves in masks, abbreviated skirts or male habiliments, attempted to indulge their longings on the following Tuesday, & were nearly all promptly arrested by the police, for what reason I know not."
This drawing is unsigned and apparently unpublished. John R. Hamilton contributed several New Orleans drawings to Harper's Weekly in early 1863, and thus might be considered a strong possibility.