Which Shall Be Captain?
Date1908
Artist
Howard Pyle
(American illustrator, 1853–1911)
Illustration Citation"The Buccaneers," by Don C. Seitz, in Harper's Monthly Magazine, January 1911
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions48 x 31 3/4 in. (121.9 x 80.6 cm)
frame: 57 1/2 x 41 in. (146.1 x 104.1 cm)
frame: 57 1/2 x 41 in. (146.1 x 104.1 cm)
Credit LineGift of Dr. James Stillman, 1994
Object number1994-38
On View
On viewClassificationsPAINTING
Label TextIn the 1800s, even as historians began to regard the age of piracy as long past, pirates took hold of the popular imagination. The drama of sea life, the romance of battle, and the charm of the handsome outlaw came together in literary and visual art, creating a vision that survives today in popular idealized pirate images. This illustration appeared with the poem “The Buccaneers,” which chronicles a fight over unearthed treasure. Observing the combat is a pirate crew described by the poet as “ragged, scarred, haggard and lean.” Though dressed for the part, several seem like humorous caricatures rather than desperate criminals.
