Drawing

Title:

Day's End

Object Name:

Drawing

Object ID:

2002.008.03.25

Creator:

Jordan, Robert (1925-1993)

Place of Origin:

England

Date:

1945

Description:

Drawings of prisoners on march. Page 25 in sketchbook of Robert Jordan (1925-1993), U.S. Army Air Force, World War II. Pencil on paper. Horizontal rectangle. Five drawings: 1. Prisoner talking to guard. Captioned in ink, "bargaining with a guard".
2. Prisoners entering large barn. Titled in pencil, "DAY'S END". Captioned in ink, "if there were no barns / to crowd us into, / we slept on / the open / ground".
3. Prisoners marching on street, in front of store with sign "HEISEL - BROTE".
4. German soldier.
5. German soldier, head only.
The sketchbook documents Sergeant Jordan's experience as a prisoner of war in Germany, including his capture, forced march, and recovery in England.

Material:

Paper

Dimensions:

H-10 W-14.5 inches

Provenance:

Robert Jordan (1925-1993) was a tail gunner when his plane was shot down over Hanover, Germany, on Nov. 26, 1944. He was captured and marched to a prisoner of war camp, Stalag Luft 4. After liberation, he recovered in a hospital in England, where a Red Cross nurse ("Mom") bought him this sketchbook. After the war, he earned degrees from Dartmouth and Columbia, and became a talented landscape painter. In 1952, he bought a farm as a summer home in Eaton, NH, and returned every summer. In 1943, he worked as a cowboy in the Southwest at age 16.

Credit Line:

Gift of the Estate of Robert Jordan

People:

Jordan, Robert (1925-1993)

Subjects:

World War II, Prisoners of war, POW's, Prisoners, Prisons, Air forces, Barns