Ichabod Crane Flying from the Headless Horseman Artist: John Quidor (American, 1801–1881)

ca. 1828

American Paintings and Sculpture

Not on view


In a dark scene from Washington Irving’s "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1820), John Quidor depicts Ichabod Crane fleeing in terror. The imaginative Quidor does not show the headless horseman in pursuit, focusing instead on the palpable fear that infects both Crane and his horse and emphasizing the darker, emotional, and chaotic aspects of the author’s stories through the landscape. This painting was the artist’s earliest attempt to portray an Irving tale.

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

22 5/8 × 30 1/16 in. (57.5 × 76.4 cm)

Credit Line

Mabel Brady Garvan Collection

Accession Number

1948.68

Geography

Made in New York City, New York, United States

Culture

American

Period

19th century

Classification

Paintings

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Bibliography
  • Roger Panetta, Dutch New York: The Roots of Hudson Valley Culture (New York: Fordham University Press, 2009), 226, ill
  • Susan B. Matheson, Art for Yale: A History of the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2001), 105–6, fig. 100
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

histories (visual works)

Subject

horses night woods

Technical metadata and APIs

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