Beschreibung:

BROWN, JOHN, Militant abolitionist . Photograph inscribed and signed ("John Brown"), an oval studio photograph of a painted portrait of Brown by N.B. Onthank, embossed imprint of "J. B. Heywood," of Boston at bottom of mount. Oval, 268 x 215mm. (10 9/16 x 8 7/16 in.) including original mount, the photograph approximately 7 7/8 x 6 7/8 in., the mount unevenly browned, a scrape to mount at top right, but the image clear and the inscription strong. A fine three-quarter length portrait of the standing Brown. Inscribed at lower right-hand portion of mount: "June 18th 1859 Your affectionate Father John Brown " PROBABLY INSCRIBED TO HIS SON JOHN, FOUR MONTHS BEFORE THE HARPER'S FERRY RAID In June 1859, John Brown and his son and namesake, who had served as an active agent in procuring arms for his father's radical anti-slavery group, met for the last time at West Andover, Ohio. It is likely that the photograph was made for Brown from the painting in Boston, where he had been a few weeks previously, conferring with Gerrit Smith and other abolitionist backers. After their meeting in Ohio, Brown returned to a farm he had rented some five miles from Harper's Ferry as a base of operations. On October 16, he and 21 armed followers seized the Federal arsenal there in hopes of arousing a general insurrection of slaves. Extremely rare. No other signed image of Brown is recorded at auction by American Book Prices Current in this century.