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The Life & Age of Man by James Baille

Sowle & Shaw

This colored print depicts a male from infancy to old age in decade-long spans. This was a popular and recurring theme of genteel society during the 19th Century. The figures are shown on ascending steps up to age 50 and then descending, with age 100 being the lowest to the right. Each image portrays a well-dressed youth or man in appropriate attire for his position in society (i.e., gentleman, soldier, elder). Verses beneath each figure associate a depicted animal with that stage of life. A small vignette of two people standing near a monument in a cemetery is in the center foreground.

Date

ca 1847

Type

lithograph

Medium

ink (overall material)

Department

NMAH

Institution

National Museum of American History

Object number

nmah_325223

Credit

Harry T. Peters "America on Stone" Lithography Collection