The Little Wanderer

About the Item: (Sorry for the reflections on the glass in the photos.) A little boy runaway has returned home, hat in hand, to the relief of his poor beleaguered mother (burdened with four other children, apparently) and the upbraiding of his grandmother. So many fabulous details in this 19th-century etching, in addition to its amazing engraving work (every bit of it originally incised on a metal plate!). Placard on back says "Published exclusively for members of the Crosby Opera House Art Association, 1866" - and there's a cool story behind this, as recorded in Wikipedia:

"Crosby's Opera House (1865–1871) was an opera house in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It was founded by Uranus H. Crosby in 1865 with the goal of advancing the arts in Chicago by bringing opera to the city. The five-story building was designed by William W. Boyington and contained statues of painting, sculpture, music and commerce that welcomed visitors as they entered through the arch of the building. After holding only occasional performances, Crosby ran into many business difficulties that resulted in a decision to sell the building in 1866. The Crosby Opera House Art Association was formed to help Crosby sell the building by lottery. The lottery distributed over 210,000 tickets, awarding purchasers great works of art and even the building itself. After being sold back to Crosby by the lottery winner, A.H. Lee, the hall began producing more consistent performances. The opera house stood for less than six and a half years before it was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and was never rebuilt."

Comes in an antique hand-carved solid wood frame that is worth more than I am asking for the piece as a whole! Engraving is in excellent condition. Print itself without frame is about 16" x 22".