Values of Civilization (Doyle)
Encyclopedia
The Values of Civilization sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...

 group is public art
Public art
The term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that have been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...

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

 artist Alexander Doyle
Alexander Doyle
Alexander Doyle was an American sculptor.Doyle was born in Steubenville, Ohio, and spent his youth in Louisville, Kentucky and St. Louis, Missouri before going to Italy to study sculpture in Carrera, Rome, and Florence....

. The allegorical sculpture
Allegorical sculpture
Allegorical sculpture refers to sculptures that symbolize and particularly personify abstract ideas as in allegory.Common in the western world, for example, are statues of 'Justice', a female figure traditionally holding scales in one hand, as a symbol of her weighing issues and arguments, and a...

 group is located on the third floor in the rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...

 of the Indiana State House, which is in 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...

, USA. The heroic-sized sculptures, representing Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

, Art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....

, Commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...

, History
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

, Justice
Justice
Justice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics; justice is the act of being just and/or fair.-Concept of justice:...

, Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

, Liberty
Liberty
Liberty is a moral and political principle, or Right, that identifies the condition in which human beings are able to govern themselves, to behave according to their own free will, and take responsibility for their actions...

, and Oratory
Oratory
Oratory is a type of public speaking.Oratory may also refer to:* Oratory , a power metal band* Oratory , a place of worship* a religious order such as** Oratory of Saint Philip Neri ** Oratory of Jesus...

, were carved from Carrara
Carrara
Carrara is a city and comune in the province of Massa-Carrara , notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some west-northwest of Florence....

 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...

 in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 in the late 1880s
1880s
The 1880s was the decade that spanned from January 1, 1880 to December 31, 1889. They occurred at the core period of the Second Industrial Revolution. Most Western countries experienced a large economic boom, due to the mass production of railroads and other more convenient methods of travel...

.

Agriculture

Agriculture is approximately 9 feet tall (274.32 cm) and carved out of Italian Carrara marble; the sculpture sits on a large cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...

 base. A black label with the word "AGRICULTURE" in large gold letters is affixed to the base. The sculpture is a female form symbolizing agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

. The figure has classical features, wears her hair in a bun with two looped braids, and is clothed in robes. Her robes are belted at the waist, as well as draped over her proper left arm. In her proper left arm she also holds wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...

. Her proper left foot is extended forward, and her proper right foot is pointed behind her body (as if she is in the middle of a step).

Art

Art is an approximately 9 foot tall (274.32 cm) statue of a young female figure wearing a floor-length tunic underneath an intricately tied outer garment, which is pinned at her proper left shoulder with a fibula. The outer garment is belted at the sculpture's upper and lower waist and is approximately two inches shorter than the tunic. The skirts of both the tunic and outer garment fall towards the floor in a multitude of folds. It is crossed diagonally over her shoulder blades and loosely gathered on her proper right chest, exposing her neck and breastbone. The statue's hair is parted in the middle and pulled back from her face into a twisted bun, and a crown of laurel leaves is nestled atop her head. Her gaze is directed forwards and her features are idealized, like the other female figures of the sculpture group with the exception of Justice. In her proper left hand, she carries a round palette
Palette
Palette may refer to:* Cosmetic palette, an archaeological form* Palette , a wooden board used for mixing colors for a painting* Palette , in computer graphics, a selection of colors...

 held down at her side, and in her proper right hand, a paintbrush held in front of her at waist height. She stands with her weight on both feet, with her proper right foot extended slightly forward of her proper left. There are several dots of an unknown black substance on the marble base underneath her feet, in front of her proper left foot. There is no discernible foundry mark or signature, but the statue is identified by the black label attached to the cement pedestal
Pedestal
Pedestal is a term generally applied to the support of a statue or a vase....

 underneath her feet, which reads "ART" in gold lettering.

Commerce

Commerce measures approximately 9 feet tall (274.32 cm) and is carved out of Italian Carrara marble. It rests on a cement base; attached to the base is a black label that reads "COMMERCE" in large gold letters. The sculpture is a female figure representing commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...

. She is dressed in Hellenistic robes which are belted at the waist, and her hair is styled in a bun (with a few tendrils loose on her neck). She holds a caduseus, a classic symbol of commerce, in the crook of her proper right arm. Her proper right foot is extended slightly forward, while her proper left foot is pointed downward behind her body (as if she is in the middle of a step).

History

History is an approximately 9 foot tall (274.32 cm) statue of a female figure draped in Hellenistic robes, holding a feathered quill
Quill
A quill pen is a writing implement made from a flight feather of a large bird. Quills were used for writing with ink before the invention of the dip pen, metal-nibbed pens, the fountain pen, and, eventually, the ballpoint pen...

 in her proper right hand and an open book cradled in the crook of her proper left arm. She wears a floor-length tunic with a wide, slightly pleated neckline underneath a loosely draped mantle which is approximately a foot shorter than the tunic itself. The mantle is draped over her proper left shoulder, encircles her body about the proper right hip, and is gathered at her proper left waist. Her proper right sleeve is rolled halfway up her arm above the elbow, and her proper right arm is crossed in front of her body, horizontal to her waist. She holds a feathered quill delicately in her proper right hand, and little finger of which is curled and raised slightly. The little finger of her proper left hand, which holds the open book, is also curled slightly, adding a sense of delicacy to her pose. Some of the pages of the book have been delineated from one another, in order to give it a more realistic appearance. Her hair is pulled back into a braid, and wound around itself several times, creating a thick bun. Her features have an idealized cast to them, and her eyes are lowered, gazing at the pages of the book in her proper left hand. The sculpture's proper right foot is raised slightly at the heel, and she stands with the majority of her weight on her proper left foot. This sculpture, like the other seven, is carved from Italian Carrara marble, and sits upon a cement pedestal. Approximately three feet below the base of the statue is a black plaque, upon which is the word "HISTORY" in gold lettering.

Justice

Doyle’s sculpture Justice is carved from a single block of Carrara marble and is approximately 9 feet (274.32 cm) tall. Her right proper leg is relaxed with the foot set in front. Her proper left leg bears the weight and her left hip is raised slightly. Her left arm rests loosely at her side with a bend in her elbow. In her left hand she holds a sword lightly, its point fixed to the base below. Wrapped around the sword’s blade are the scales of justice
Lady Justice
Lady Justice |Dike]]) is an allegorical personification of the moral force in judicial systems.-Depiction:The personification of justice balancing the scales of truth and fairness dates back to the Goddess Maat, and later Isis, of ancient Egypt. The Hellenic deities Themis and Dike were later...

. Her right arm is close to her body and is bent at the elbow. Her right hand is open, palm up, with fingers curved slightly.

The woman is dressed in Hellenistic clothing with soft folds of drapery carved naturalistically. The dress is full length with its collar lying falling just below her neck and its hem mostly covering her feet. The bodice is gathered and snugly fit. Around the waist a thick, twisted band of fabric is wrapped so that it appears lightly knotted with the cloth’s end coming from under the band at the rear of the dress. This excess length of cloth is drawn up through the crook of her right arm. The dress’ sleeves appear rolled and sit just above the elbows.

Of the eight works in this sculpture group, only Justice does not have a classically rendered face. Articles in Indianapolis and Bedford, Indiana
Bedford, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,768 people, 6,054 households, and 3,644 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,157.1 people per square mile . There were 6,618 housing units at an average density of 556.2 per square mile...

 newspapers have reported that the model for Justice was Hoosier
Hoosier
Hoosier is the official demonym for a resident of the U.S. state of Indiana. Although residents of most U.S. states typically adopt a derivative of the state name, e.g., "Indianan" or "Indianian", natives of Indiana rarely use these. Indiana adopted the nickname "Hoosier State" more than 150...

 Mary E. Wilson, née
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...

 White (27 November 1845–11 April 1908). Mary Wilson’s husband, Francis M. Wilson (27 December 1839–9 May 1922) was a judge on Indiana’s Tenth Judicial Circuit Court. It is not known if Alexander Doyle and Francis Wilson were acquainted; however, each owned and were involved in the operation of limestone quarries outside Bedford, Indiana. Limestone from this region was used in the construction of the Indiana State House.

The sculpture rests on a large square cement base that has a dark plaque with "JUSTICE" in gold letters.

Law

Carved from a single block of Carrara marble, Law stands approximately 9 feet (274.32 cm) tall.His proper left leg is in front of his right. The right proper leg bears the weight. In the crook of his left arm is a large book symbolizing written law. See Symbols of Law pdf. In his right hand is a staff.

His Roman-style robes resemble a toga
Toga
The toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps 20 ft in length which was wrapped around the body and was generally worn over a tunic. The toga was made of wool, and the tunic under it often was made of linen. After the 2nd century BC, the toga was a garment worn...

. The full-length garment has a flat, squared collar and gathers at neckline and sleeves, Belted at waist, the toga is drawn up loosely between his waist and book so that soft folds drape diagonally across body front. A length of fabric is pulled over his left shoulder and is tucked under his left arm between the book and his body.

The face is wrinkled and veined with deep creases at the forehead and under the deep-set eyes. The mustache and beard are full, and the beard is divided into two at the center of the chin. Around his head is a wreath of oak leaves. Short hair curls from under the wreath and the top of the head is bald. Evidence of abrasions from original carving are visible on the top of the head.

The sculpture rests on a large square cement base that holds a dark plaque with "LAW" in gold letters.

Liberty

Liberty is a 9 foot (274.32 cm) tall statue made of Carrara marble which symbolizes liberty
Liberty
Liberty is a moral and political principle, or Right, that identifies the condition in which human beings are able to govern themselves, to behave according to their own free will, and take responsibility for their actions...

 in the form of a young woman with idealized features. She stands with legs slightly apart and her proper left foot positioned in front of her body, while her proper right foot points away from her body at an approximately 45° angle
Angle
In geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two rays sharing a common endpoint, called the vertex of the angle.Angles are usually presumed to be in a Euclidean plane with the circle taken for standard with regard to direction. In fact, an angle is frequently viewed as a measure of an circular arc...

. She wears a Hellenistic tunic which is pinned at each shoulder, exposing both arms and draping across her bust. The upper part of the tunic has slipped down on her proper right, exposing her shoulder. The tunic is cinched at the waist and falls in folds to her sandaled feet. Liberty is wrapped in a mantle, and gathers its folds at waist height in her proper left hand. Her proper right arm is extended towards the ground and positioned close to her body. Her proper right hand holds a long sword, the point of which rests on the base in between her feet. Liberty wears a Phrygian cap atop her hair, which is tied back at the base of her neck. One thick lock of hair falls down the middle of her back, while another is swept forward onto her proper right shoulder. The statue stands on a large square cement base which holds a black plaque that reads "LIBERTY" in gold letters.

Oratory

This statue is a depiction of Oratory carved out of marble. The 9 foot (274.32 cm) tall marble statue sits on a large cement base with a plaque that reads "ORATORY". The sculpture is a man in Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 robes. He is holding his right hand out in a declamatory gesture and he is gathering his robes in his left hand.

Historical information

This sculpture group comprises eight statues which represent the fields of human endeavor that shaped civilization, and was commissioned as a set by the Indiana State House Board of Commissions in June of 1887. Alexander Doyle proposed to furnish eight statues in either plaster, for which he quoted a price of $5,000, or in marble, for which he quoted a price of $9,000. As he was based in New York at the time, all correspondence was addressed to him there.

The subjects of the statues were to be mutually agreed upon with Adolph Scherrer, architect of the Indiana State House. Doyle created half natural size plaster models of the proposed sculptures, and sent photographs of them to the Board of Commissions in early August 1887. On August 17th, 1887, a contract for the sculptures was prepared and sent to Doyle. The contract stipulated that the Board of Commissions had the right to “alter, modify, or change” the subjects of the models, and that work on the pieces would not begin until they had approved the designs. Between August 18th and 19th, 1887, the Board of Commissions accepted the proposed designs based on the plaster models, and Doyle was authorized to begin work on the sculptures.

Though Doyle is recorded as having designed and executed the eight statues, a contemporary newspaper article indicates that Italian stone workers actually carved them, earning a wage of $3 to $7 a day. Heavy tariffs
Tariff
A tariff may be either tax on imports or exports , or a list or schedule of prices for such things as rail service, bus routes, and electrical usage ....

 were placed on blocks of marble imported from overseas at the time, but art intended for public exhibition was admitted to the country duty free. Doyle is recorded as having saved the state of Indiana $1,500 by having the pieces sculpted in Italy, rather than in the United States.

On March 8, 1888, the Board of Commissions corresponded with Doyle to find out the necessary dimensions of the pedestals which the sculptures would eventually be installed upon, desiring to prepare them in advance. The Board of Commissions requested Doyle’s presence at the arrival of the statues, as he was to assess the condition of the statues and check for any damages sustained during shipment. The statues traveled by freight train after having arrived in America from Italy, and were delivered to the Indiana State House on September 1st, 1888. The statues were then installed, the last of which was put into place on September 20th, 1888.

Location history

The sculptures were shipped from Italy and arrived at the Indiana State House on September 1, 1888. When General Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...

inspected the pieces on September 12th of the same year, he found them still stored in their original shipping containers. The statues remained in these boxes until their installation, which took place between September 17th and 20th of 1888. As the entire set was intended from the beginning of the State House building project to be placed within the State House Rotunda, they have remained in their original positions since their installation. History and Liberty are located in the Northwest side of the Rotunda, while Art and Law are located in the Northeast. Justice and Commerce occupy the Southwest side of the Rotunda, and Agriculture and Oratory occupy the Southeast.

Condition

Between 1945 and 1948, a project was undertaken to renovate the Governor's Suite at the State House. As part of this renovation, the sculptures in the rotunda were cleaned with acid, and spotlighted to improve visibility. Forty years later, the eight sculptures were cleaned again as part of the renovations to the Indiana Statehouse that took place during "Hoosier Celebration 88." According to the Indiana Department of Administration website, after the cleaning, details of the eight rotunda sculptures that had not been seen in many years became visible once again.

External links

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