Treasures From The Montana Historical Society Museum Collection
Title:
WHEN THE LAND BELONGED TO GOD
Artist:
Russell, Charles M. (1864-1926)
Medium:
Oil on canvas
Date:
1914
Source:
Museum Purchase MHS
Object ID:
X1977.01.01
Description:
Russell painted When the Land Belonged to God to hang in the reading room of the Montana Club, Helena's prestigious gentleman's association. It depicts a vast herd of bison crossing the Missouri River at daybreak, just downstream from the town of Fort Benton. At face value, it is a beautifully realized portrait of a majestic icon of the American West. Moreover, as the title indicates, it is also a dramatic depiction of Russell's belief in the superiority of life in Montana before the coming of Euro-American civilization forever altered life under the Big Sky.
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Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01
Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)
Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)
Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)
Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)
Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)Painting, When the Land Belonged to God, X1977.01.01 (detail)
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