Death and the Sculptor
Encyclopedia
Death and the Sculptor, also known as the Milmore Monument and The Angel of Death and the Young Sculptor is a sculpture in bronze
, and one of the most important and influential works of art, created by sculptor Daniel Chester French
. The work was commissioned to mark the grave in Forest Hills Cemetery
in Jamaica Plain, Boston, Massachusetts, of the brothers Joseph (1841-1886), James and Martin Milmore
(1844-1883). It has two figures effectively in the round, linked to a background relief
behind them. The right-hand figure represents a sculptor, whose hand holding a chisel
is gently restrained by the fingers of the left-hand figure, representing Death
, here shown as a winged female.
(1873) that resides in Mount Auburn Cemetery
.
When the plaster cast of the work was in Paris to be cast into bronze it was exhibited at several salons, including the Salon de Champs de Mars where it was awarded a third-class medal, "only the second time an American had been so honored by the Parisian art world."
The architectural setting was initially designed by architect C. Howard Walker, but this was redesigned by French's frequent collaborator Henry Bacon
in 1914 and finally replaced by one designed the Boston firm of Andrews, Jones Boscoe and Whitmore in 1945, at which time the location of the monument was changed. The bronze portion was cast in Paris by the Gruet Foundry. French, along with the Milmore family agreed to have four other casts of the piece done, those going to museums in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and St. Louis.
The Chicago plaster was displayed at the World's Columbian Exposition where it received good reviews. It cast was destroyed in 1949.
In 1917, another version of the work was done, this time in marble
for the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York. It was carved by the Piccirilli Brothers
who carved virtually all of French's marbles.
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
, and one of the most important and influential works of art, created by sculptor Daniel Chester French
Daniel Chester French
Daniel Chester French was an American sculptor. His best-known work is the sculpture of a seated Abraham Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.-Life and career:...
. The work was commissioned to mark the grave in Forest Hills Cemetery
Forest Hills Cemetery
Forest Hills Cemetery is a historic cemetery, greenspace, arboretum and sculpture garden located in the Forest Hills section of the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The cemetery was designed in 1848.-Overview:...
in Jamaica Plain, Boston, Massachusetts, of the brothers Joseph (1841-1886), James and Martin Milmore
Martin Milmore
Martin Milmore was a noted American sculptor.Milmore immigrated to Boston from Sligo, Ireland at age seven, graduated from Boston Latin School in 1860, took art lessons at the Lowell Institute, and learned to carve in wood and stone from his older brother Joseph...
(1844-1883). It has two figures effectively in the round, linked to a background relief
Relief
Relief is a sculptural technique. The term relief is from the Latin verb levo, to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is thus to give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane...
behind them. The right-hand figure represents a sculptor, whose hand holding a chisel
Chisel
A chisel is a tool with a characteristically shaped cutting edge of blade on its end, for carving or cutting a hard material such as wood, stone, or metal. The handle and blade of some types of chisel are made of metal or wood with a sharp edge in it.In use, the chisel is forced into the material...
is gently restrained by the fingers of the left-hand figure, representing Death
Death (personification)
The concept of death as a sentient entity has existed in many societies since the beginning of history. In English, Death is often given the name Grim Reaper and, from the 15th century onwards, came to be shown as a skeletal figure carrying a large scythe and clothed in a black cloak with a hood...
, here shown as a winged female.
Grave Subjects
The Milmore brothers immigrated to the United States from Ireland in 1851, Joseph becoming a stone carver and Martin a sculptor. They frequently collaborated on commissions, the most notable one being the granite SphinxSphinx
A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...
(1873) that resides in Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded in 1831 as "America's first garden cemetery", or the first "rural cemetery", with classical monuments set in a rolling landscaped terrain...
.
Work
French's memorial, commissioned in 1889 and dedicated in 1893, depicts the Angel of Death gently taking the hand of a sculptor, or stone carver who is working on a sphinx figure very much like the one the brothers created.When the plaster cast of the work was in Paris to be cast into bronze it was exhibited at several salons, including the Salon de Champs de Mars where it was awarded a third-class medal, "only the second time an American had been so honored by the Parisian art world."
The architectural setting was initially designed by architect C. Howard Walker, but this was redesigned by French's frequent collaborator Henry Bacon
Henry Bacon
Henry Bacon was an American Beaux-Arts architect who is best remembered for the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. , which was his final project.- Education and early career :...
in 1914 and finally replaced by one designed the Boston firm of Andrews, Jones Boscoe and Whitmore in 1945, at which time the location of the monument was changed. The bronze portion was cast in Paris by the Gruet Foundry. French, along with the Milmore family agreed to have four other casts of the piece done, those going to museums in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and St. Louis.
The Chicago plaster was displayed at the World's Columbian Exposition where it received good reviews. It cast was destroyed in 1949.
In 1917, another version of the work was done, this time in marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
for the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York. It was carved by the Piccirilli Brothers
Piccirilli Brothers
The Piccirilli Brothers were a family of renowned marble carvers who carved a large number of the most significant marble sculptures in the United States, including Daniel Chester French’s colossal Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.-History:In 1888, Giuseppe Piccirilli , a...
who carved virtually all of French's marbles.