Introduction to Watching the Shot

According to the official Winslow Homer raisonne, Record of Works by Winslow Homer, Volume 1, 1846 through 1866, by Goodrich and Gerdts, 2005, a previously unknown Civil War painting titled, Watching the Shot by Winslow Homer came to light in 1988 (1.1). Although the actual artwork is listed as unlocated, the fact that the painting ever existed at all owes its official acknowledgement to an archived news article from 1866. The 1988 catalog for the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Winslow Homer Paintings of the Civil War exhibit, authored by Marc Simpson is the first to report the discovery: "19 April 1866 Auction, “American Artists’ Sale,” Miner & Somerville (Somerville Art Gallery, 845 Broadway), includes six works by Homer, apparently all Civil War paintings: … 7. Watching the Shot … 23. Extra Rations [The Sutler’s Tent] … 51. The Quoit Players [Pitching Quoits] … 76. At Rest … 85. On the Picket Line … 92. Near Andersonville.” Note; Nos. 7, 76 and 85 cannot yet be associated definitively with known paintings." (1.2)