Axial Commons Image Treasury
Circular 19th-century lithograph of a winding road between scenes of vice in flames and a white church with a steeple, with eagles above and labeled text.

The Way of Good & Evil by John Hailer

A circular lithograph shows a winding road from the lower right, lined with walking figures, ascending past a white church with a tall steeple toward a rayed sky with eagles. Along the path, scenes of vice, including a burning town and a tavern, sit beside a college, a peace house and a temperance-style gathering, with text labels.

Artist
Hailer
Date
1862
Medium
paper (overall material) ink (overall material)
Source
Smithsonian (National Museum of American History)
Size
3284 × 4000 px
Download full size
Public domain · Smithsonian (National Museum of American History) releases this image under CC0 (latest date 1862).
Rights checked 2026-11-05 · tier A · as stated by the source: CC0 (Smithsonian Open Access)

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History

Español: El camino del bien y del mal, litografía de 1862

Una litografía circular muestra un camino sinuoso que sube desde la parte inferior derecha, bordeado de figuras caminando, hacia un cielo con rayos y águilas, pasando por una iglesia blanca con campanario alto. Junto al sendero aparecen escenas de vicio, como un pueblo en llamas y una taberna, con rótulos de texto.

Português: O caminho do bem e do mal, litografia de 1862

Uma litografia circular mostra uma estrada sinuosa que sobe do canto inferior direito, ladeada por figuras caminhando, em direção a um céu com raios e águias, passando por uma igreja branca de campanário alto. Ao longo do caminho, cenas de vício, como uma cidade em chamas e uma taberna, aparecem com legendas de texto.

More from Virtues and Allegories

Oil painting of an elderly bearded man in a red cap and dark robe, hands clasped, looking downward against a shadowy brown background.Portrait of a Man as the Apostle PaulPainting of a white swan with spread wings and open beak on a rocky bank, under a dark stormy sky with reeds.The Threatened Swan; Interpreted later as an Allegory on Johan de WittPainting of a grimacing elderly man held by a figure in pink as an older woman holds a candle in a dark interior.The Operation (Allegory of Touch)Painting of a young woman with a flower crown and flowering staff, wearing a silvery-green cloak, against a dark wooded background.FloraEngraving of an armored woman with a spear seated among weapons and armor, with battle scenes and a town in the background and the word ARMA above.Minerva, or "Arma" (Allegory of the Art of War), pl. 2 in the Schema, seu Speculum Princip