Boston from the Harbor, 1779

Joseph Frederick Wallet Des Barres drew this aquatint for the Atlantic Neptune, the monumental maritime atlas commissioned by the British Admiralty during the American Revolution. The view is from the water, as a ship captain would see it. Boston's skyline is a low band of church spires on the horizon, with vessels anchored in the foreground. The purpose was not art but navigation: identifying landmarks to guide ships into a harbor controlled by the Royal Navy.

  • The church spires on the skyline. They were the primary landmarks for navigating into Boston Harbor.
  • The rocky cliff on the right edge frames the harbor entrance as a pilot would see it from the deck.
  • The ships in the foreground show different rigging configurations; each vessel type carried a specific trade function.

All prints are high-quality reproductions made from museum-grade scans at 300 DPI. Depending on the original scan dimensions, some prints may include white fill along the edges.

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