Puck

Harriet Hosmer, Puck, modeled 1854, carved 1856, marble, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. George Merrill, 1918.3.5
Copied Harriet Hosmer, Puck, modeled 1854, carved 1856, marble, 30 1⁄2 x 16 5⁄8 x 19 5⁄8 in. (77.5 x 42.1 x 49.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. George Merrill, 1918.3.5
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Puck
Artist
Date
modeled 1854, carved 1856
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
30 1⁄2 x 16 5⁄8 x 19 5⁄8 in. (77.5 x 42.1 x 49.9 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. George Merrill
Mediums
Mediums Description
marble
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • Fantasy — winged being
  • Figure male — child — nude
  • Literature — Shakespeare — Midsummer Night’s Dream
  • Literature — character — Puck
  • Landscape — plant — mushroom
Object Number
1918.3.5

Artwork Description

Harriet Hosmer created Puck out of financial necessity when her father could no longer support her in Rome. Literary themes were popular in the nineteenth century, and Hosmer chose the mischievous but adorable fairy from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Puck---or “my son,” as Hosmer called him---was an instant success with the aristocracy, including Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales and the crown princess of Germany, who, upon seeing the work, remarked, “Oh, Miss Hosmer, you have such talent for toes!”