''Sam Houston'' is a statue of Sam Houston by

Elisabet Ney Franzisca Bernadina Wilhelmina Elisabeth Ney (26 January 1833 – 29 June 1907) was a German-American sculptor who spent the first half of her life and career in Europe, producing portraits of famous leaders such as Otto von Bismarck, Giuseppe G ...

, originally modeled in 1892 and installed in 1905; it is part of the

National Statuary Hall Collection The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old ...

in the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

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, ...

, as one of the two statues from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. The other Texas statue, ''

Stephen F. Austin Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...

'', is also by Ney and was produced in parallel. Another carving of ''Sam Houston'' is displayed in the

Texas State Capitol The Texas State Capitol is the capitol and seat of government of the American state of Texas. Located in downtown Austin, Texas, the structure houses the offices and chambers of the Texas Legislature and of the Governor of Texas. Designed in 1881 ...

, where it was installed in 1903.

History

In early 1892, the Texas government was preparing materials for a building at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...

to be held the following year in Chicago. Texas Governor

Oran Milo Roberts Oran Milo Roberts (July 9, 1815May 19, 1898), was the 17th Governor of Texas from January 21, 1879, to January 16, 1883. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Roberts County, Texas, is named after him. Early life Roberts was born in Laure ...

recommended that the women's commission charged with fundraising for the exhibit speak with

, a German–American sculptor residing in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. After a meeting, Ney was invited to sculpt portrait statues of Sam Houston and

for the exhibit, though the commission had no funds to pay the artist for her work. Ney agreed and went to work first on the statue of Houston; by April 1892 she had completed a clay model of the piece and invited some of Houston's family and friends to preview it and assess the likeness. By the following July a

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

rendering of ''Houston'' had been finished, and the statue was publicly displayed in Ney's studio (now the

Elisabet Ney Museum The Elisabet Ney Museum is a museum located in Austin, Texas, United States. It is housed in the former studio of sculptor Elisabet Ney and is dedicated to showcasing her life and works. There is a permanent collection of her portrait busts and ...

) prior to its transportation to Chicago for the Exposition. The statue of Austin was completed too late to be displayed in Chicago, but the Houston statue was well received, with the Exposition's Art Commission even offering the piece a space in the main fine arts building. After the conclusion of the Exposition, Ney and the women's commission intended to cut editions of the Houston and Austin statues in marble for permanent display in the

, but it took years to secure the necessary funding. In 1901 the Texas Legislature appropriated the funds for the carving, and the two statues were unveiled in the Texas Capitol on January 19, 1903. An additional copy of each statue was cut for submission to the

and unveiled in the

in 1905.

Design

''Sam Houston'' is a full-length statue in

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

. It shows Houston standing on slightly uneven ground with his right foot forward, looking up and ahead into the distance. The right hand is held across the chest, while the left rests on the hilt of a

saber A sabre (French: �sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as the ...

hanging at the left hip. Houston is portrayed as a young pioneer, dressed in fringed

buckskins Buckskins are clothing, usually consisting of a jacket and leggings, made from buckskin, a soft sueded leather from the hide of deer. Buckskins are often trimmed with a fringe – originally a functional detail, to allow the garment to s ...

and calf-length boots, with a Native American

sarape The serape or jorongo is a long blanket-like shawl/cloak, often brightly colored and fringed at the ends, worn in Mexico, especially by men. The spelling of the word sarape (or zarape) is the accepted form in Mexico and in other Spanish-spea ...

thrown over his left shoulder. The front face of the self base (the marble platform on which the figure stands) is inscribed "." In composing the piece, Ney borrowed Houston's actual saber from his daughter, Maggie Williams, and rendered the weapon in authentic detail. The sarape was also a recreation of a characteristic piece of Houston's wardrobe, modeled on a similar blanket that Ney located for reference. When critics complained that the Houston statue was tall while the Austin statue was only , she replied that these had been the actual heights of the men, and that anyone objecting should "take the issue up not with her but with God".

References

External links

* {{Portal bar, Texas, Visual arts, United States 1893 sculptures 1903 sculptures 1905 sculptures Monuments and memorials in Washington, D.C.

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

Public art in Austin, Texas Sculptures by Elisabet Ney Sculptures of men in Texas Sculptures of men in Washington, D.C. Statues in Texas Statues in Washington, D.C. Statues of Sam Houston

History

Design

See also

References

External links