Paul Manship, National Sculpture Society Medal of Honor, 1940, bronze, 4 in. (10.2 cm) diam., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Paul Manship, 1966.47.123
Copied
Artwork Details
- Title
- National Sculpture Society Medal of Honor
- Artist
- Date
- 1940
- Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 4 in. (10.2 cm) diam.
- Credit Line
- Bequest of Paul Manship
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- bronze
- Subjects
- Figure group
- Mythology — classical — muse
- Allegory — arts and sciences — sculpture
- Object Number
- 1966.47.123
Artwork Description
The National Sculpture Society was organized in 1893 and its members have included noted sculptors Augustus Saint-Gaudens and Daniel Chester French. The society counts nearly four thousand members today drawn from the ranks of American sculptors, architects, historians and conservators. Paul Manship, who created this design, served as president of the NSS from 1939 to 1942, when he was awarded the medal of honor for his service. On the obverse, a winged muse offers a laurel wreath to a sculptor, who holds a ball of clay in one hand and a sculpting loop in the other.