Howard Pyle and His Students

The Buccaneer was a Picturesque Fellow, 1905 Howard Pyle (1853-1911) From "The Fate of a Treasure Town," by Howard Pyle Harper’s Monthly Magazine, December 1905 Oil on canvas 30-1/2 x 19-1/2 in. Museum Purchase, 1912 DAM #1912-31

Pyle’s pirate stories ranged from high-seas dramas in Caribbean waters to dockside exploits in New York City. The Fate of a Treasure Town tells of the dangers of the Cartagena coast off Colombia.

Although pirates comprised a small segment of Pyle’s illustration, they captured and still hold the public’s imagination. Based on historical and folkloric reports, Pyle’s pirates often have a dashing yet sinister demeanor. The stance and expression of this handsome buccaneer speak of freedom and rebellion. He epitomizes the romantic outlaw. Weapons at the ready, cloaked in brilliant red against his domain of sea and sand, he poses casually while he keeping a wary eye for intruders. His languid and bejeweled companion guards the treasure.

In Pyle’s mind, the pirate’s charm and ill-gained opulent surroundings did not mitigate his murderous crimes. Readers may, said Pyle, “read between the lines of history this great truth: Evil itself is an instrument toward the shaping of the good. Therefore the history of evil as well as the history of good should be read, considered, and digested.”