Abraham Lincoln (bust by Jones) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Abraham Lincoln is a public artwork by American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

sculptor and medallist Thomas Dow Jones

Thomas Dow Jones

Thomas Dow Jones was an American sculptor and medallist.Jones was born in Oneida County, New York. He moved to Ohio in the 1830s, where he worked in Cincinnati as a stonemason, and by 1842 was sculpting portrait busts. In 1851 he moved to New York City, and in 1853 was elected an Associate Member...

, located in the Indiana Statehouse, Indianapolis

Indianapolis

Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...

, Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The painted plaster

Plaster

Plaster is a building material used for coating walls and ceilings. Plaster starts as a dry powder similar to mortar or cement and like those materials it is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens. Unlike mortar and cement, plaster remains quite soft after setting,...

bust

Bust

Bust may refer to:*Bust , a sculpture depicting a person's head and shoulders*Bust , a feminist pop culture magazine*Bust, Bas-Rhin, a city in north-eastern France*Bust, a word for a woman's breasts...

of Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...

that resides in the Indiana Statehouse is a copy of an 1861 clay bust. Several versions of the bust exist in plaster, marble, and bronze mediums.

Thomas Dow Jones' original 1861 bust was re-sculpted (by the artist) into marble as part of the Lincoln-Vicksburg Monument that was installed in the Ohio Statehouse

Ohio Statehouse

The Ohio Statehouse, located in Columbus, Ohio, is the house of government for the state of Ohio. The Greek Revival building houses the Ohio General Assembly and the ceremonial offices of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Treasurer, and Auditor....

in 1871. Another copy of the bust was cast into bronze and is part of the Southern Allghenies Museum of Art's permanent sculpture collection (74.011) in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Jones' bust of Lincoln is also in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery

National Portrait Gallery (United States)

The National Portrait Gallery is an art gallery in Washington, D.C., administered by the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections focus on images of famous individual Americans.-Building:...

(NPG.74.53) in Washington, D.C.

Description

The white plaster bust depicts Abraham Lincoln in a left-facing quarter-profile; the figure is draped in a cape, wearing a suit and stock tie. The dimensions are as follows: height: 33 inches (83.82 cm), width: 25 inches (63.5 cm), length: 18 inches (45.72 cm). The bust is clearly inscribed Patented June 3, 1862 on the lower proper left. "TD Jones, sculptor" is inscribed on the bust's posterior center. As this is a copy of the original clay bust, the artist's signature on the posterior center is not clear. The bust is situated on a white, wooden base in the northeast exterior niche of the Indiana Statehouse rotunda. A gold plaque is located beneath the stone niche; although not attached to the sculpture, it describes the subject matter, reading:

Abraham Lincoln

Born Feb.12, 1809—Died Apr. 15, 1865

Came to Indiana 1816

Served in Black Hawk War, 1832

Illinois House of Representatives, 1834-1841

Congressman from Illinois, 1847-1849

U.S. President, Mar. 4, 1861 until his death Apr. 15, 1865

Historical information

The Indiana Statehouse' plaster bust of Lincoln was patented June 3, 1862. Thomas Dow Jones' original bronze sculpture was cast in 1861 and is believed to be one of the earliest depictions of a bearded Abraham Lincoln.

Thomas Dow Jones was commissioned by the leading Republicans of Cincinnati to sculpt a portrait bust of president-elect Lincoln before his inauguration in March 1861. Jones arrived in Springfield on Christmas Day with letters of recommendation from two of his most recent clients, Ohio Governor Salmon P. Chase

Salmon P. Chase

Salmon Portland Chase was an American politician and jurist who served as U.S. Senator from Ohio and the 23rd Governor of Ohio; as U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Abraham Lincoln; and as the sixth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.Chase was one of the most prominent members...

and Thomas Ewing (General William T. Sherman's father-in-law). Lincoln consented to sit for Thomas Dow Jones and gave him permission to sculpt the president-elect's likeness at the St. Nicholas Hotel in Springfield, Illinois

Springfield, Illinois

Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...

until Lincoln's inauguration.

Location history

In its time at the Indiana Statehouse, Lincoln's bust has been moved to a number of niches around the rotunda. In 1943, it was located in the southeast corner pier facing east. In 1964, Lincoln's bust was moved again to the west side of the rotunda to allow Governor Henry F. Schricker's bust to be placed in a more prominent position facing the east door. The bust currently occupies the exterior northeast niche of the rotunda.

Artist

Thomas Dow Jones started his career as an apprentice stonecutter and mason alongside his father in Ohio. In 1841, he traveled to Cincinnati to answer an ad for a proposal to build the Panama Canal. The proposal fell through, and Jones turned to sculpting grave monuments and, later, portrait busts. He received many commissions for portrait busts of prominent individuals such as Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, statesman Henry Clay

Henry Clay

Henry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...

, and General Winfield Scott

Winfield Scott

Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....

, and eventually opened a studio on Broadway

Broadway (New York City)

Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...

in New York in 1851. Thomas Dow Jones was a member of the National Academy of Design, where he exhibited his work from 1853 to 1856.

Other works

Salmon P. Chase, 1837
Civil War Memorial, 1870
Lincoln-Vicksburg Monument, 1871
Henry Clay (medallion), 1851
Lewis Cass, 1881
Bust of General Winfield Scott, 1876

Condition

According to the MIMSY XG Database employed by the Indiana State Museum, the condition of the bust is recorded as 'very good'; there are very few marks/scratches on the proper right and left sides of the bust.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.