The Subsiding of the Waters of the Deluge

Thomas Cole, The Subsiding of the Waters of the Deluge, 1829, oil on canvas, 35 ³⁄₄ x 47 ³⁄₄ in. (90.8 x 121.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Katie Dean in memory of Minnibel S. and James Wallace Dean and museum purchase through the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program, 1983.40

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Artwork Details

Title: The Subsiding of the Waters of the Deluge
Artist: Thomas Cole
Date: 1829
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
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2nd Floor
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South Wing
Dimensions: 35 ³⁄₄ x 47 ³⁄₄ in. (90.8 x 121.4 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. Katie Dean in memory of Minnibel S. and James Wallace Dean and museum purchase through the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program
Mediums: oil
Mediums Description: oil on canvas
Classifications: Painting
Subjects: Landscape — mountain
Figure — fragment — skull
Architecture — boat — Noah’s Ark
Disaster — flood
Religion — Old Testament — Noah
Object Number: 1983.40
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1983.40

Artwork Description

Thomas Cole envisioned America as a new start for civilization.In his mind, the American Revolution was like the biblical story of the Great Flood, sweeping away the despotism of the British Crown.In this painting the waters from that Flood subside, suggesting a peaceful future for the young republic.A lone skull resting against the rocks suggests that the world has been washed clean of human folly. At the center of the painting, bathed in light, a dove flies toward land as the ark floats on the calm waters, ready to usher in a new and more enlightened era in America.