Statue of Christopher Columbus (Chicago) explained

Statue of Christopher Columbus
Italic Title:no
Wikidata:Q5112138
Artist:Carlo Brioschi
Medium:Bronze
Subject:Christopher Columbus
Metric Unit:cm
Imperial Unit:in
City:Chicago
Coordinates:41.8679°N -87.6196°W
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Zoom:13

Christopher Columbus is a bronze statue of Italian explorer and navigator Christopher Columbus. It was installed during 1933 in Chicago's Grant Park, in the U.S. state of Illinois.[1] Created by the Milanese-born sculptor Carlo Brioschi, it was set on an exedra and pedestal designed with the help of architect Clarence H. Johnston. It was removed and put in storage in 2020.

History

In 1933, Chicago celebrated its 100th anniversary with the Century of Progress World's Fair. In conjunction with the fair, Chicago's Italian-American community donated the artwork to the city.[2] The statue was unveiled and dedicated in a ceremony on August 3, 1933, as part of Italian day at the fair.[3] [4]

The statue was vandalized on June 13, 2020, during the George Floyd protests.[5] After an incident on July 17, 2020, where protestors attempted to topple the work and a number of injuries occurred during a confrontation with police,[6] the statue was removed in the early morning hours of July 24, by order of Chicago's Mayor Lori Lightfoot.[7]

Design

The bronze, beaux arts statue shows Columbus standing and gesturing into the distance with one hand. In his other hand, he holds a scrolled map at his side. On the sides of the statue's art deco pedestal are carved depictions of: one of Columbus' ships, the Santa Maria; astronomer and mathematician, Paolo Toscanelli, who plotted the course to the "New World;" the explorer, Amerigo Vespucci; and the seal of the City of Genoa. In the four corners of the pedestal are busts allegorically representing, Faith, Courage, Freedom, and Strength. Despite appearances, Brioschi's son has denied that the figure holding a fasces representing Strength was a portrait of Benito Mussolini.[8]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Christopher Columbus Monument (in Grant Park). City of Chicago. July 1, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110824220258/http://www.explorechicago.org/city/en/things_see_do/attractions/park_district/christopher_columbus.html. August 24, 2011. dead.
  2. Web site: Christopher Columbus. Chicago Park District. July 1, 2011. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20111006170834/http://www.cpdit01.com/resources/planning-and-development.fountains-monuments-and-sculptures/Grant%20Park/Christopher%20Columbus.pdf. October 6, 2011.
  3. News: . July 30, 1933 . Expect 75,000 At Columbus Statue Rites . Chicago Sunday Tribune . Chicago . Part 1, Page 6.
  4. News: Gardner . Virginia . August 4, 1933 . 25,000 Italians Join in Colorful Program at Fair . Chicago Daily Tribune . Chicago . 13.
  5. News: Christopher Columbus Statue at Chicago's Museum Campus Vandalized . WMAQ 5 Chicago . June 13, 2020 . NBC Universal.
  6. News: Yin . Alice . July 17, 2020 . Attempt to topple Christopher Columbus statue in Chicago's Grant Park prompts standoff with police . Chicago Tribune . Chicago . https://web.archive.org/web/20200718033701/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-chicago-police-christopher-columbus-protest-20200718-ea62bmy6ujgh7cbeofrpwbakse-story.html . July 18, 2020 . November 18, 2023.
  7. News: Mayor's Office Releases Statement After Columbus Statues Removed in Chicago . en-US . WMAQ 5 Chicago . July 24, 2020 . NBC Universal . July 24, 2020.
  8. Riedy, James L., Chicago Sculpture, University of Illinois Press, Urbana, Illinois, 1981 p. 204.