Selected Artifacts
The Upper vs. The Lower Mississippi
We have chosen 13 artifacts from the exhibit to give you a better sense of the types of items in the Old Man River exhibit. We hope you enjoy them!
 "BOUND
DOWN THE RIVER" lithograph with hand coloring, Currier and
Ives, 1870~ Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine IA |
 GOLD-PLATED SELMER TRUMPET of Louis Armstrong, serial no. 8491 ~ Louis Armstrong House and Archives at Queens College, Flushing NY |
 BIRCH BARK CANOE, handcrafted in 1908 in Ely, MN, using Chippewa fashion and techniques ~ State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines IA |
 "MALLARDS" print and stamp created by Maynard Reese, 1993 ~ State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines IA |
 DIVING HELMET, c. 1940s ~ George M. Verity Riverboat Museum, Keokuk IA |
 DOUBLE
BARREL FLINTLOCK DUELING PISTOLS of James Monroe. Manufactured by
Tatham & Egg in London, the accessories include a screwdriver,
brass powder flask, small brass pring flask, and a ball rammer that
also houses an iron "worm" used to pull unfired balls
from the barrel.~ Ash Lawn - Highland, Home of James Monroe, Charlottesville VA |
 PARKING SIGN from Elvis Presley's Graceland ~ John Koza, Iowa City IA |
 "RIVERMAN ON THE MISSISSIPPI" oil painting by James Dallas Parks, 1940 ~ Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine IA |
 SADDLE of General Ulysses S. Grant ~ Galena State Historic Sites, Ulysses S. Grant Home, Galena IL |
 "RIVERBOAT"
pen, pencil, and sepia wash by Thomas Hart Benton, c. 1935~ Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine IA |
 "UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER" oil painting by Henry Lewis, 1855 ~ Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine IA |
 VOODOO
MASK FROM LIBERIA - Carved wooden mask depicts a creature that may
be part cow, part alligator, and part human. It is intricately decorated
with layers of cowrie shells and fabrics, but has lost the raffia
hair that would have reached to the ground from holes in the mask.
The fur bag contains a stone talisman carved to depict a monkey
on one side, an owl on the reverse, and protects the wearer of the
mask from evil.~ An Anonymous Lender |
 Artifacts
from several lenders, including:
OVAL PORTRAIT of steamboat pilot William Champe
Page, 1864, St. Louis CHINA from the George M. Verity riverboat ELBOW-LENGTH GLOVES, c. 1890s GLASS OIL LAMP, mid-to-late 1800s |
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End of Exhibit
Thank you!
Early Exploration and Development
River Days
Riverfront Property
Man vs. Man
Man vs. Nature
The Arts Along the River
Legends and Spirits
View Selected Artifacts
