Ohio Finds: Bull Portrait by Carl Freigau

A county fair evokes plenty of sights, sounds and smells, from Ferris wheels to funnel cakes to livestock competitions. The bull (dubbed the “29th Duke of Goodness”) in this 1876 work by Carl Freigau would have certainly been a contender in the latter. 

Freigau was a German-born artist who settled in Dayton, where he earned a living by “making pen portraits of blooded stock,” as he advertised in 1881. Freigau took commissions from throughout the state, and this portrait was for farmer David Selsor, who began trading livestock as an enterprising teenager and eventually became known as the “Cattle King” of Ohio. 

In the 19th century, much of a man’s wealth was reflected in what he had standing in his fields, and this type of artwork allowed him to represent that in his home.

During the early 1800s, the English aristocracy began commissioning portraits with exaggerated attributes. Cows and pigs were depicted as massive, hinting at expected yields of meat, while horses had the long, streamlined necks and legs of racing stock. This trend traveled to America, resulting in portraits like this one.

Sold: $1,190

Hollie Davis is a co-owner of Meander Auctions in Whipple, Ohio. meanderauctions.com

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