Mort Künstler "The Ghost Column" Signed Offset Litho — Framed, COA

On the night of February 16, 1862, while the senior Confederate commanders at Fort Donelson voted to hand 13,000 men to U.S. Grant, one colonel refused — rode out into a frozen, starless night through an ice-choked creek and brought every one of his men with him. Künstler painted that colonel at the exact moment of that decision: riding toward you, out of the dark, flag still flying. This is not decoration. It is a document of audacity, rendered by the most historically rigorous Civil War artist of his generation, printed in a verified edition of 1,000 with all plates subsequently destroyed, hand-numbered and hand-signed by Künstler himself — and countersigned by the publisher, a dual-authentication standard that separates serious limited editions from the field. Impression 913 is presented in professional walnut-tone framing with double mat, behind glass, ready to anchor a library wall the day it arrives.

The lot is complete: the original Certificate of Authenticity bearing both Künstler's and publisher Ted Sutphen's signatures, the historical narrative sheet documenting Forrest's breakout in period detail, and the Mort Künstler artist biography booklet published by American Print Gallery of Gettysburg — the house that set the standard for serious Civil War military prints.

CONDITION

Good. The print presents with strong color and no visible fading, and the mat and glass are intact. Some dings visible to the frame.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall (framed): 26 3/8" × 30 3/4" × 1 1/4"
• Visible (image): 17" × 23"
• Medium: Offset Lithography
• Edition: 913 / 1,000
• Publisher: American Print Gallery, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
• Artist: Mort Künstler