Stipple line engraving depicting Shakers engaged in their particular form of religious worship, ca. 1830, displayed in a worn but handsome period wood frame. Text below the image, partially covered by the frame, reads "Shakers. their mode of Worship." Scattered toning and staining most heavily visible from the verso, several small expertly made repairs to the paper at the edges, sheet edges with some small nicks. Overall very good.  10" x 13" sight. Framed 17.5" x 21.5".

Several rows of Shakers, separated by gender, are shown performing a step dance in the meeting hall, with a female spectator seated in left foreground and African American men shown in the group. The short man at the head of the second row of Shakers is likely Brother David Rowley. Cloaks and hats hang on pegs in the background. The scene is known to depict the dance formation called the Square Order Shuffle in the 1824 Meetinghouse, Church Family, Mount Lebanon, NY.

The present work is among some 18 versions of this scene that appeared during the 19th century with small variations and variant titles, including also "Shakers near Lebanon, State of New York." There was considerable fascination with Shaker ways at the time, and these were among the first published images showing a facet of Shaker life. See Emlen's "The Shaker Dance Prints," in Imprint, v. 17, no. 2, autumn 1992.

The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, known more widely as the Shakers, are a Christian sect founded in England during the mid-1700s. The name "Shaker" comes from "Shaking Quakers," an insult coined to mock the way Shakers use their bodies during worship, whether shaking, shouting, dancing, whirling, or speaking in tongues. The movement peaked in the 19th century, with 18 major communities as well as numerous smaller ones throughout the United States. Towards the end of the 19th century, the movement tapered out, as members died off and new converts slowed. Shakers practice celibacy, which undoubtedly did not help matters. Only one active Shaker community still exists in the United States, Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in Maine. As of 2021, the village had three members.