Pic Today 1/18/16

 

 

 

ANCIENT CAVE SCENE

 PAINTING ON DISPLAY 

A small portion of a giant painted panorama

is on display in the main lobby

of the St. Louis Art Museum.

Monumental Grandeur of the

Mississippi Valley,

(oil on muslin cotton, c. 1850)

was painted by John J. Egan

as part of an enormous 55-foot wide

traveling archaeological lecture display,

to show 19th century audiences

natural wonders of the Mississippi Valley.

The 8-foot high panorama section above

shows Cave-in-Rock along the Ohio River,

which includes cave wall drawings and artifacts.

The cave was used as a hideout for bandits

and river pirates in the early 19th century.

Today the cave is a protected natural feature

at Cave-In-Park State Park in Illinois.