Statue of Thomas Jefferson (David d'Angers)
Statue of Thomas Jefferson | |
---|---|
Artist | David d'Angers |
Subject | Thomas Jefferson |
A statue of American
Origins
It was commissioned in 1832 by Jewish naval officer and New York real estate investor
Levy visited the Paris studio of accomplished sculptor and
The statue shows Jefferson with a pen in one hand and a copy of the
In March 1834, Levy offered the bronze statue to the Congress, and it was accepted in a letter by Senator Asher Robbins of Rhode Island, who was Chairman of the Joint Committee on the Library.[1] The Senate agreed to accept the statue, but in debate some House members questioned it for a variety of reasons, including if it was proper to have a statue of Jefferson before they installed one of George Washington.[1]
Movement
While the work was initially placed in the
In 1874, Uriah Levy's brother lobbied Congress to have the statue returned to the Capitol. Damaged by its long exposure outside, it was cleaned and repaired.[1] It was first placed in the National Statuary Hall, yet it was finally returned to the Rotunda in 1900, where it still remains.[1]
New York City version
In 1834, when the Common Council accepted Levy's gift, they also gave him a gold snuff box and the Freedom of the City.[2] Before the statue was officially installed, it was displayed at 355 Broadway, with admission charged for viewing. According to press reports, the proceeds let Levy purchase and distribute 1,200 loaves of bread to be given to the poor. [3]
For around seven decades, the statue was said to sit in the Governor's Room of City Hall.[2] At some point, however, it was placed in a hall of the building's basement.[2] After lobbying by Jefferson Monroe Levy, the Art Commission voted on July 1, 1919, to return the statue to the Governor's Room.[2]
In 1995, as Deputy Mayor John S. Dyson was planning to restore City Hall, art scholar Leslie Freudenheim advocated it be moved from the side of the council chambers, where it had been placed at some point, to a more prominent location "at the juncture of City Hall's two magnificent, curvilinear staircases."[3]
In 2011, when the Council returned after a year and a half of renovations, councilmember Letitia James noted that the statue had been cleaned. [4]
New York City Council removal
Calling Jefferson "America's most noted slaveholder," on June 18, 2020, councilmembers
The New York City Public Design Commission voted unanimously to remove the statue in October 2021.[7] The statue was removed in November 2021.[8]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Tederick, Lydia (2013). "Uriah Levy's Gift to the Nation". The White House Historical Association. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Proceedings of the Board of Aldermen of the City of New York. Vol. 3 and 4. New York: Board of Aldermen. 1919. p. 2.
- ^ a b Freudenheim, Leslie (1 January 2011), "City Hall Restoration Should Return Jefferson to Place of Honor", New York Times: A26
- ^ Taylor, Kate (9 December 2011), "Renovation Complete, City Council Goes Home", New York Times: A35
- ^ https://council.nyc.gov/press/wp-content/uploads/sites/56/2020/06/Letter-to-Mayor-de-Blasio.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ Marsh, Julia; Hicks, Nolan (19 June 2020), "Chirlane McCray to decide fate of NYC statues of Washington, Jefferson", New York Post
- ^ O'Brien, Brendan (October 20, 2021). "Thomas Jefferson statue to be removed from New York City Council chamber". Reuters. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
- ^ @nypost (November 23, 2021). "Thomas Jefferson statue removed from City Hall after 187 years" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
External links
- Media related to Thomas Jefferson by Pierre-Jean David d’Angers at Wikimedia Commons