Original Tom Sawyer Illustration by Worth Brehm

FINE ORIGINAL CHARCOAL DRAWING, “THE STRAIN UPON PENT EMOTION REACHED ITS CLIMAX”, FROM THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER, signed at upper left.

Ca. 1910.

Price: $6,000.00


About the item

Brehm, Worth. Published by Harper & Brothers in their edition of 1910. Image size 21 x 13 3/4 inches. 1 vols. Original Tom Sawyer Illustration by Worth Brehm. Fine condition.

Item #12734

A moment of high drama, as Tom, in the courtroom witness chair, testifies against Injun Joe. During his testimony he is asked, “What did you take [with you to the graveyard]? and he answers, “Only a--a--dead cat.” Tom's words are written below the drawing, and may have been the original caption; in the book the picture is captioned “The strain upon pent emotion reached its climax”.

Exhibited in 1980-81 at The Santa Barbara Museum of Art exhibition “Enchanted Images: American Children's Illustrations 1850-1925”; with the original exhibition label.

A SPLENDID ILLUSTRATION TO TWAIN'S CLASSIC.