Between 1833 and 1836, Thomas Cole produced a series of five paintings presenting human civilization as having both a rising and a falling phase. Born in England, Cole emigrated to America at 17, and rose to prominence as a leading member of the Hudson River School, painting Romantic history and landscape paintings that sold to prosperous New York businessmen.

Cole’s presentation of civilization in this series undoubtedly reflects American anxieties as to the destiny of that nation, just then emerging from the pastoral stage to material prosperity. Yet similar ideas about the cycle of history can be found in the poetry of English Romantic poets like Shelley and Byron.

The paintings were designed to be hung around a fireplace in the picture gallery of a New York mansion on Greenwich Street in New York City. As shown in the design sketch below, they were arranged in a semi-circle or parabola, with three small canvases directly above depicting the morning, noontime and afternoon sun.

Titles:

• The Savage State | The Arcadian or Pastoral State | The Consummation of Empire
• Destruction | Desolation | Design for hanging the series

For those interested in exploring the fine detail of the paintings, the following site allows one to zoom, as well as to explore the works which inspired Cole: link (works best in Chrome or Firefox).