"Defiant Comanche" Mixed Media Sculpture by Chris Pardell

This is an original American eagle, hand-carved from pine during the early to mid 20th century. The eagle features a touch of original gilt over yellow sizing with hand-painted highlights, emphasizing the eyes and beak. The eagle is displayed with both wings fully outstretched. The feathers are expertly detailed, especially considering that this eagle is a single-piece carving. The eagle is both the national bird and the national animal of the United States. The founders of the United States were fond of comparing their new republic with the Roman Republic, in which eagle imagery, usually the golden eagle, was prominent. On June 20, 1782, the Continental Congress adopted the design for the Great Seal of the United States depicting a bald eagle grasping 13 arrows in its sinister (left) talon and an olive branch with its dexter (right) talons. Those arrows are tightly aligned, a symbol of "strength in unity" that's found in the traditional cultures everywhere, from the Romans to the Iroquois. In this case, the bundle of arrows were a nod to the unity of the original 13 colonies. The olive branches emphasize the power of peace. The eagle motif has since appeared in allegorical engravings...

Presented is “U.S. Flag Behind Capitol,” an original mixed-media painting by American artist Ron Sloan. The drawing shows an intricately detailed rendering of the front entrance to the United States Capitol building. Behind the Capitol is a large, waving American flag, set outside an orange-hued rounded rectangle. Sloan created this stunning artwork in February of 1985, for use on the Fleetwood First Day Cover of the 22 cent “Flag Over Capitol” stamp, issued in March of that same year. The painting depicts the iconic neoclassical building from the east orientation, with it’s dome towering overhead. Plans began in May of 1854 to build a new cast-iron dome for the United States Capitol. The then-architect of the Capitol Thomas Walter and his team were sold on the aesthetics of a new dome, as well as the utility of a fire-proof one. A year later, on March 3, 1855, President Franklin Pierce signed off on the appropriation of $100,000 to build the dome. Construction began in September of that year with the removal of the first dome raised by Charles Bulfinch. Over the next 11 years, the dome rose over the nation's capital. By December of 1863, Walter was able to set the bronze sculpture “Statue of Freedom” atop the dome. Thomas Walter resigned in 1865 and his replacement, Edward Clark, assumed the role of finishing the last aspects of the dome. Just over a month later, in January 1866, Constantino Brumidi, who had been hired to paint a fresco above the interior dome's oculus, removed the scaffolding used...

This original mixed media painting, entitled “Flag Over Supreme Court”, was painted by Jim Butcher in 1983. The work originally appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S....

van Allsburg, Chris. The Polar Express. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1985. First edition. In original illustrated dust jacket and maroon hardcover boards with silver embossing and titles to spine. With laid-in bookplate signed by the author-artist Chris van Allsburg...