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Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
Catalogue Entry
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Image provided by the Blanden Memorial Art Museum
Plate on frame
Image provided by the Blanden Memorial Art Museum
Mihály Munkacsy, Blind Milton dictating "Paradise Lost" to his daughters, 1877
New York Public Library Archives, The New York Public Library. "Blind Milton dictating "Paradise Lost" to his daughters" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 4, 2021. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/66760d80-c7f1-0135-7e34-49d3fe482577
New York Public Library Archives, The New York Public Library. "Blind Milton dictating "Paradise Lost" to his daughters" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 4, 2021. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/66760d80-c7f1-0135-7e34-49d3fe482577
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27.0 Literary/Historical
In addition to his scenes of everyday life and portraits of people, Johnson created images of historical events and figures from works of literature, drama, and music. For example, “Carry Me, and I’ll Drum You Through” was inspired by an incident from the Battle of Antietam, 1862, and Membership Vote at the Union League Club, May 11, 1876, recorded a contentious meeting in which he participated much later. His Marguerite, Cosette, and Minnehaha are personifications of fictional heroines from novels and poetry. His Boy Lincoln represents both the future United States president and the archetypical American youth who, with determination and hard work, could succeed. Johnson rendered several of these imaginative images as both paintings and drawings. These literary and historical works evince both his personal interest in those subjects and his awareness of their popularity with the broad public. —AM
Hills no. 27.0.22
Baur no. 123
Milton and His Daughters
Blanden Memorial Art Museum title: “Milton Dictating Paradise Lost to his Daughters”
Alternate titles: Milton Dictating "Paradise Lost" to His Daughters; Milton Dictating to His Daughters
1876
Oil on canvas
25 1/16 x 30 1/16 in. (63.7 x 76.4 cm)
Signed and dated lower right: E. Johnson 1876
Markings
Exhibition labels on verso of stretcher:
1. top center:
Eastman Johnson
65 West 55th St. New York
2. upper left: handwritten, in ink:
This Picture is forwarded to the Centennial Exhibition, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, by the New York State Centennial Board, Office, 625 Broadway, New York City
No. 448
Subject, Milton Dictating to His Daughters
Artist, Eastman Johnson
Owner, " "
To be returned to " " 65 W. 55th St. N.Y. City
printed or stamped:
Value $2000=
3. unknown original location:
Art Dept. Int….
New Y….
1. top center:
Eastman Johnson
65 West 55th St. New York
2. upper left: handwritten, in ink:
This Picture is forwarded to the Centennial Exhibition, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, by the New York State Centennial Board, Office, 625 Broadway, New York City
No. 448
Subject, Milton Dictating to His Daughters
Artist, Eastman Johnson
Owner, " "
To be returned to " " 65 W. 55th St. N.Y. City
printed or stamped:
Value $2000=
3. unknown original location:
Art Dept. Int….
New Y….
Provenance
Possibly Phillips Phoenix, Esq., by 1904
Charles Granger Blanden, until 1933
Blanden Memorial Art Museum, Fort Dodge, Iowa, 1933 (by gift)
Exhibitions
1876 United States Centennial Commission
United States Centennial Commission, Philadelphia, Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, May 10–November 1876, no. 259, as Milton and His Daughters, owner Eastman Johnson, for sale.1904b Union League Club of New York
The Union League Club of New York, New York, American Figure Painters, April 14–16, 1904, no. 15, [possibly, as Milton Dictating to His Daughters, owner Phillips Phoenix, Esq.]1933a Newhouse Galleries
Newhouse Galleries, New York, 1933.1939 Brooklyn Museum
Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York, An American Genre Painter: Eastman Johnson, 1824–1906, January 18, 1939–February 26, 1940. (Exhibition catalogue: Baur 1940), no. 123, as Milton Dictating "Paradise Lost" to His Daughters.1981 Marquette University
Marquette University, Milwaukee, Changes: Art in America, 1881/1981 (Centennial Exhibition), October 5–November 6, 1981.References
Centennial Exhibition 1876
Official Catalogue of the International Exhibition of 1876. Part II: Art Gallery, Annexes, and Outdoor Works of Art. Department IV: Art. Cambridge, MA: John R. Nagle & Company, 1876. Exhibition catalogue, p. 22, no. 259, as Milton and His Daughters, owner Eastman Johnson, for sale.Benjamin 1882
Benjamin, S. G. W. "A Representative American." The Magazine of Art 5 (November 1882), p. 487.Hartmann 1908
Hartmann, Sadakichi. "Eastman Johnson: American Genre Painter." The International Studio 34 (April 1908), p. 111 [possibly, as Milton and his Daughters].Baur 1940
Baur, John I. H. An American Genre Painter: Eastman Johnson, 1824–1906. Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, 1940. Exhibition catalogue (1939 Brooklyn Museum), pp. 48, 65, no. 123, as Milton Dictating "Paradise Lost" to His Daughters.Xie 1989
Xie, Margaret Carney, ed. Handbook of the Collections in the Blanden Memorial Art Museum. Fort Dodge, IA: Blanden Charitable Foundation, 1989, illus. in b/w.Douglass 1999
Douglass, Julie M. "Lifetime Exhibition History." In Eastman Johnson: Painting America, by Teresa A. Carbone and Patricia Hills. Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Museum of Art, in association with Rizzoli International Publications, 1999. Exhibition catalogue, pp. 262, 266.Manoguerra 2010
Manoguerra, Paul. Georgia Museum of Art Catalogue of Its Collection. Athens, GA: Georgia Museum of Art, 2010.Sitter Biography
Sitter: Milton, John
Biography:
John Milton (1608–1674). English poet. Author of Paradise Lost.
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Keywords
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Record last updated September 6, 2021. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Milton and His Daughters, 1876 (Hills no. 27.0.22)." In Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=468 (accessed on May 2, 2025).