Mist obscures much of the background though several large bushes can be made out behind the central figures.
Mist obscures much of the background though several large bushes can be made out behind the central figures. A plucked bird as well as a red feather lie splayed across a large bundle of supplies upon which a young man holding a rifle and dressed in a bright blue shirt leans. Both he and his older counterpart in the rear of the vessel seem to be looking out at the spectator of this 1845 painting. The eerie stillness of the image is magnified by the black cat tied to the front of the canoe and the single rock that peeks out of the surface, disturbing the otherwise perfectly rendered reflections on the title river. FTP identify this canvas depicting a nautical voyage taken by trappers created by George Caleb Bingham.
Mist obscures much of the background though several large bushes can be made out behind the central figures.
Fur Traders Descending the Missouri