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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Lincoln's Laboratory, or The Union Alchemist |
| Reference | 1988-102-6 |
| Library | Philadelphia Museum of Art |
| Collection | The William H. Helfand Collection, 1988 |
| Date | 1861 |
| Document Type | Ephemera |
| Theme(s) | Production and Trade; Satire and Parody |
| Keywords | cure, apothecary, laboratory, slavery, alchemy |
| Additional Information | During the Civil War, both the North and the South used envelopes as a medium for disseminating propaganda; in some cases half or more of the envelope was covered with an illustration, usually a caricature. In this multicolored example, Abraham Lincoln is at work in his laboratory, distilling off slavery from a mixture of Confederate states and cities to produce a "Pure Refined National Elixir of Liberty." Among the signs in the laboratory are several advertising medicines with the names of Lincoln's officers, including "[Robert Kingston?] Scott's Extirpation Powders Sure Cure for Rattlesnake Bite" and "[Benjamin] Butler's Mineral Pills." There is also a jar within which an effigy of Confederate President Jefferson Davis is hung. William H. Helfand, from 'The Picture of Health: Images of Medicine and Pharmacy from the William H. Helfand Collection' (1991), p. 128. |
| Note | Please note that some of the metadata for this document has been drawn from the Philadelphia Museum of Art's catalogue. |
| Visual Content | View thumbnails |
| Copyright | Philadelphia Museum of Art |