''Eternal Silence'', alternatively known as the Dexter Graves Monument or the Statue of Death, is a monument in Chicago's

Graceland Cemetery Graceland Cemetery is a large historic garden cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Ir ...

and features a bronze sculpture set upon, and backdropped by, black granite. It was created by American sculptor

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860, in Elmwood, Illinois – October 30, 1936, in Chicago) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. His 1903 book, ''The History of American Sculpture,'' was the first survey of the subject and stood for deca ...

in 1909.

History

The monument commemorates Dexter Graves, who in 1831 led a group of thirteen families from Ohio to settle in Chicago.Lanctot. Barbara, ''A Walk Through Graceland Cemetery: A Chicago Architecture Foundation Walking Tour'', A Chicago Architecture Foundation Walking Tour, Chicago, IL, 1992 P. 6 Graves died in 1844, 75 years before the statue's creation and 16 years before Graceland Cemetery was founded. His body was presumably relocated from its original resting place at the old City Cemetery (the present site of Lincoln Park). The will of Graves' son Henry, who died in 1907, provided $250,000 in funds for the monument and another $40,000 intended to commemorate Henry's favorite race horse, Ike Cook. The Cook monument was to stand alongside a drinking fountain for horses in Washington Park. The horse monument never materialized, despite the construction of a model; instead, in 1920, another Taft piece, ''

Fountain of Time ''Fountain of Time'', or simply ''Time'', is a sculpture by Lorado Taft, measuring in length, situated at the western edge of the Midway Plaisance within Washington Park in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. The sculpture is inspired ...

'', was built in its place and features a hooded figure similar to the one in ''Eternal Silence''. Ada Bartlett Taft's 1946 book ''Lorado Taft; Sculptor and Citizen'' lists ''Eternal Silence'' as one of the artist's most important works.Kiefer, et al., pp. 146–47. Images of ''Eternal Silence'' have been used in other artworks, including those by

Claes Oldenburg Claes Oldenburg (January 28, 1929 – July 18, 2022) was a Swedish-born American sculptor, best known for his public art installations typically featuring large replicas of everyday objects. Another theme in his work is soft sculpture versions ...

. One

folktale A folktale or folk tale is a folklore genre that typically consists of a story passed down from generation to generation orally. Folktale may also refer to: Categories of stories * Folkloric tale from oral tradition * Fable (written form of the a ...

claims that looking into the eyes of the statue's hooded figure causes the viewer to see a vision of his or her own death.

Design

''Eternal Silence'' has been called "eerie",Kiefer, et al., pp. 68–69. "somber", "grim-looking",Cutler, Irving. ''Chicago: Metropolis of the Mid-Continent'',
Google Books link
, SIU Press, 2006, p. 285, (). "mysterious",Sinkevitch, Alice. ''AIA Guide to Chicago'',
Google Books link
, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2004 p. 227, (). and "haunting". The bronze figure, based on traditional depictions of the

Grim Reaper Death is frequently imagined as a personified force. In some mythologies, a character known as the Grim Reaper (usually depicted as a berobed skeleton wielding a scythe) causes the victim's death by coming to collect that person's soul. Other b ...

, is set against a

black granite In the construction industry, black rocks that share the hardness and strength of granitic rocks are known as black granite. In geological terms, black granite might be gabbro, diabase, basalt, diorite, norite, or anorthosite Anorthosite () i ...

base and stands tall upon that base. The black granite provides contrast for the bronze statue, which is heavily

oxidized Redox (reduction–oxidation, , ) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of substrate change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state, while reduction is the gain of electrons or a ...

because of its age. The cemetery used to shine the statue to return its true bronze patina but received many complaints and requests to return it to its more dramatic green sheen; the cemetery now keeps the statue in its preferred oxidized state. The hooded figure was influenced by Taft's own "ideas on death and silence". Historically speaking, the figure in ''Eternal Silence'' is related to the sculpted funeral procession around the

Tomb of Philip the Bold The Tomb of Philip the Bold is a funerary monument commissioned in 1378 by the Duke of Burgundy Philip the Bold (d. 1404) for his burial at the Chartreuse de Champmol, the Carthusian monastery he built on the outskirts of Dijon, in today's Fran ...

Dijon, France Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlie ...

and the Adams Memorial by

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he trav ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

The statue is considered famous and has been noted as Graceland Cemetery's most "unforgettable" monument.Bielski, Ursula. ''Creepy Chicago: A Ghosthunter's Tale of the City's Scariest Sites'',
Google Books link
, Lake Claremont Press, 2003, p. 93, ().Cohn, Scottie. ''Chicago Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff'',
Google Books link
,

Globe Pequot Globe Pequot is a book publisher and distributor of outdoor recreation and leisure titles that publishes 500 new titles. Globe Pequot was acquired by Morris Communications Morris Communications, headquartered in Augusta, Georgia, is a privat ...

, 2011, pp. 86–87, (). The monument was designed by Taft and cast by Jules Bercham.Graceland Cemetery, Graves Monument
", Property Information Report, HAARGIS Database, ''

Illinois Historic Preservation Agency The Illinois Historic Preservation Division, formerly Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Illinois, and is a division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. It is tasked with the duty of m ...

'', accessed October 8, 2011.Kiefer, et al., p. 132. On its base, Taft inscribed the north side with his signature; the south side is inscribed with ''Am. Art Bronze Foundry J. Bercham -Chicago-''. The monument falls within Art Nouveau style.

Notes

References

*Kiefer, Charles D., Achilles, Rolf, and Vogel, Neil A.
Graceland Cemetery
( pdf), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, HAARGIS Database, ''

'', June 18, 2000, accessed October 8, 2011. {{Public art in Chicago Sculptures by Lorado Taft Outdoor sculptures in Chicago Personifications of death Burials at Graceland Cemetery (Chicago) 1909 sculptures Bronze sculptures in Illinois Historic district contributing properties in Illinois Art Nouveau sculptures and memorials Art Nouveau architecture in Chicago Statues in Chicago 1909 establishments in Illinois National Register of Historic Places in Chicago

History

Design

See also

Notes

References