Artist:
N.C. Wyeth
(American, 1882 - 1945)
Beyond Uncharted Seas Columbus Finds a New World
Alternate Title(s):The Caravels of Columbus
Medium: Oil on canvas
Date: 1927
Dimensions:
104 × 153 in. (264.2 × 388.6 cm)
National Geographic Society
Accession number: SUPP2000.1000
Research Number: NCW: 1000
InscribedLower right: N. C. WYETH / 1927
References
Special Color Supplement, National Geographic Magazine, vol. LIV, no. 1 (July 1928); illustration in blue tones (endsheet) and in b/w p. (13), "An Invitation to Explore," souvenir of the National Geographic Society, Washington, 1933(?); Douglas Allen and Douglas Allen, Jr., N.C. Wyeth, The Collected Paintings, Illustrations and Murals (New York: Crown Publishers, 1972), ps. 162, 267; Christine B. Podmaniczky, N. C. Wyeth, A Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings (London: Scala, 2008), M.36, p. 615
Curatorial RemarksWyeth laid out his vision for this decoration in a letter of early May, 1926: (For one of two panels presenting exploration by water and by air) "the ships of Columbus, conveying above all else the spirit of the sea-water" (NCW to John Oliver LaGorce, attached to letter dated by NCW May (?) 1926, National Geographic Society, Washington, DC).
Image Source for printed Catalogue Raisonne:Photography directly from artwork
Photo Credit:Victor R. Boswell, Jr. / National Geographic Image Collection