Publication of Note | December 2025

Released in 2016, the 15 essays in this volume serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of art as a lens for interpreting and understanding the Civil War. By carefully analyzing monuments, photographs, and artwork, this volume provides plenty of thought-provoking insights into how items found in what Savage calls “major cultural spaces” have shaped and continue to influence people’s understanding of our American Iliad. It emphasizes how close examination of images — such as Alexander Gardner’s photograph of the dead at Antietam or August Saint-Gaudens’ Robert Gould Shaw Memorial — can be used as a medium to explore the Civil War’s complexities and shed light on its relevance today.        

To learn more about this book and to preview some of the chapters, please visit yalebooks.yale.edu.