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Exceptionally rare antique Victorian chromolithograph titled “Only a Little Brook,” copyrighted 1879 by George Stinson & Co. of Portland, Maine, and presented in a beautiful period wood frame. This deeply moving mourning print depicts a mother tenderly cradling her dying child by candlelight, pointing toward a heavenly vision of angels and cherubs beckoning from above — a classic Victorian deathbed comfort scene.
The print is accompanied by its full original verse, printed directly on the lithograph: “A dying child feared the river of death, but while passing over whispered, it is only a little brook after all.” The poem continues in the child’s voice, expressing fear of death’s “deep, endless river,” only to find peace as angelic music fills the room and the child is “borne safe” to the Father’s home. This genre of sentimental mourning art was enormously popular in the 1870s-1880s, meant to comfort grieving parents with the reassurance that death was gentle, brief, and not to be feared — a “little brook” rather than an abyss.
George Stinson & Co. was a well-known Portland, Maine chromolithography publisher of the period, producing sentimental and religious prints widely distributed and sold through subscription agents and general stores across the country. Prints from this publisher in original frames are increasingly hard to find intact.
Condition: presented in the original wood frame with foxing, toning, and surface wear consistent with age (145+ years old); frame shows finish wear and some chipping to the corner (see photos); glass intact; image colors still vibrant with strong detail. A powerful and poignant piece of 19th-century American mourning culture, ideal for collectors of Victoriana, death/mourning ephemera, or George Stinson & Co. lithography.
