| George Washington | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Artist | Horatio Greenough |
| Year | 1840 (1840) |
| Type | Carrara marble |
| Dimensions | 3.5 m × 2.6 m (136 in × 102 in × 82 1/2[1] in) |
| Location | National Museum of American History,Washington, D.C., United States |
| Coordinates | 38°53′28″N77°01′50″W / 38.89111°N 77.03056°W /38.89111; -77.03056 |
| Owner | Smithsonian Institution |
George Washington, also known asEnthroned Washington, is a largemarble sculpture byHoratio Greenough commissioned by theUnited States Congress on July 14, 1832 for thecentennial ofU.S. PresidentGeorge Washington's birth on February 22, 1732. Completed in 1840, the statue was soon exhibited in theRotunda of the United States Capitol and then moved to theCapitol's east lawn in 1843.[2] Since 1964, it has been in theNational Museum of American History.[2]
Horatio Greenough basedEnthroned Washington onPhidias'Statue of Zeus at Olympia, one of theSeven Wonders of the Ancient World which was destroyed inLate Antiquity.[3]
The seated and sandal wearing Washington gazes sternly ahead. He is bare-chested and his right arm and hand gesture with upraisedindex finger toward Heaven. His left palm and forearm cradle a sheathedsword,hilt forward, symbolizing Washington turning over power to the people at the conclusion of theAmerican Revolutionary War. The representation of Washington in Roman clothing is indicative ofNeoclassical art.
The originalLatin inscription, on the back of the statue reads:
and translates as: "Horatio Greenough made this image as a great example offreedom, which will not survive without freedom itself."
On July 14, 1832, the U.S. Congress commissioned Greenough to create a statue of Washington for display in theU.S. Capitol rotunda.[4]When the marble statue arrived inWashington, D.C. fromItaly on July 31, 1841 it immediately generated controversy and criticism on its installation in the rotunda in December 1841.Many found the sight of a half-naked Washington offensive, even comical.
Because of the sculpture's weight and the dim light inside the rotunda, the statue was relocated to a pedestal on the east lawn of the Capitol in 1843.Disapproval continued and some joked that Washington was desperately reaching for his clothes,[5] then on exhibit at thePatent Office severalblocks to the north.
The statue was brought back indoors to theSmithsonian Castle, after Congress authorized its transfer by joint resolution on May 22, 1908. It remained there until 1964. It was then moved to the newMuseum of History and Technology (now the National Museum of American History). The statue has been exhibited on the second floor of the museum since then.
Thedemigod/Baphomet-like pose of Washington is portrayed inDan Brown's best-selling novelThe Lost Symbol (2009), in which the author describes a hypothesis according to which Washington and the otherFounding Fathers decorated thenational capital full ofFreemason or occult symbols.
The statue appears near the beginning of the 2013first-person shooter,BioShock Infinite, set in an alternate 1912 where Washington,Benjamin Franklin, andThomas Jefferson are worshiped by the inhabitants of the floating city of Columbia.
