In fine condition. This painting was developed as preparation for a series of murals commissioned for the New York offices of Hoffman’s brothers’ company, Gold Operators, Inc.

“A bench stope is the most hazardous of all stope mining. The miner is suspended by a rope tied to a ladder while he drills underground. Should he slip or the ladder give way, it’s a fall of 200 or 300 feet. The ladder is only held by that one iron strut you see there.” (commentary by Irwin D. Hoffman in “Irwin D. Hoffman: An Artist’s Life,” Boston Public Library 1982)