Cutlass and Leather Scabbard 1935 - 1942

This watercolor of a cutlass and scabbard was made sometime around 1845 by an anonymous artist. I can imagine the artist carefully mixing their paints, trying to get just the right shade of brown for the leather and the metallic glint of the blade. It's like they're trying to capture not just the look of these objects, but also the feeling of them – the weight of the sword, the roughness of the leather. See how the artist used thin washes of color? It gives the painting an almost ghostly quality, as if these objects are fading into the past, becoming memories themselves. Maybe this piece was made for someone far away, or even after a battle. This artwork feels haunted by history. The act of painting becomes a way of preserving, remembering, and maybe even mourning. The artist reminds us that we're all part of a bigger conversation, a never-ending exchange of ideas across time.