Albert Bierstadt 'The Rocky Mountains'

Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902)

The Rocky Mountains

Published London, Thomas McLean, 1869

Chromolithograph by H.M. Long

Image size: 32 1/4 x 18 3/4” Framed size: 41 x 27 1/2” 

This chromolithograph, titled *The Rocky Mountains* by Albert Bierstadt, was published by Thomas McLean in London in 1869 and lithographed by H.M. Long. It is an original chromolithograph produced under Bierstadt’s direction, based on his iconic painting *The Rocky Mountains, Lander's Peak* (1863). As a prominent chronicler of the American West, Bierstadt undertook multiple trips to regions such as the Rocky Mountains and Yosemite Valley, where he sketched the landscapes that became the foundation of his most famous works.

The lithograph beautifully captures the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains, focusing on Lander's Peak in Wyoming’s Wind River Range. The composition features light breaking through a dramatic bank of thunderclouds above a peaceful valley, where Native Americans on horseback rush down the mountainside toward a cluster of tepees. This scene blends movement with tranquility, embodying the romanticized vision of the West that was central to American landscape painting of the period.

As many as 20 lithographic stones were employed to achieve the rich, sumptuous palette of Bierstadt’s original oil painting, which now resides in the Brooklyn Museum of Art. Measuring 32 1/4 by 18 3/4 inches and framed at 41 by 27 1/2 inches, this chromolithograph retains the expansive, awe-inspiring qualities of Bierstadt's monumental work. It was issued as part of a pair with *The Rocky Mountains, Lander's Peak*, sharing the artist’s vision with an international audience.

Created after Bierstadt’s 1859 expedition with Colonel Frederick W. Lander’s government survey team, this work reflects the era’s Manifest Destiny ideology—the belief that the American frontier was destined for White settlers, despite the presence of Indigenous populations such as the Shoshone, who are depicted in the foreground. Publicly exhibited to great acclaim, the original painting sold for an astounding $25,000 in 1865 to James McHenry and later returned to Bierstadt’s personal collection.

This chromolithograph captures Bierstadt’s rapturous vision of the American landscape, presenting the Rocky Mountains in all their majesty and offering a profound testament to the allure of the American West during the 19th century.