Outdoor sculpture in Washington, D.C.

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There is more outdoor sculpture in Washington, D.C. than in any other city in the United States. In addition to the capital's most famous monuments and memorials, virtually any figure recognized as a national hero, either in government or military, is likely to be posthumously awarded with his or her own statue in a park or public square. Some figures appear on several statues: Abraham Lincoln, for example, has at least three likenesses, including those at the Lincoln Memorial, in Lincoln Park, and the old Superior Court of the District of Columbia. There are also a number of international figures, such as Mohandas Gandhi, who have been immortalized with statues. The most prominent statue in Washington is the "Statue of Freedom", a 19½-foot (5.9 m) tall allegorical statue that rests atop the Capitol dome. By law, no statue in Washington may be taller, so many statues — such as that of Thomas Jefferson at the Jefferson Memorial — are 19-feet tall.

Such human-likeness statues are the most commonplace sculptures in Washington, but there are also a number of public and private sculptures of animals, objects, and abstractions spread throughout the city. Two museums on the National Mall include sculpture gardens: the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden and the National Gallery of Art.

Contents

[edit] Statues of humans

Meridian Hill Park contains several statues including Ettore Ximenes' "Dante".
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Meridian Hill Park contains several statues including Ettore Ximenes' "Dante".

[edit] Other outdoor sculpture in D.C.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • James M. Goode, The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C. (1974)
  • Washington D.C. Memorials, a directory of memorials, monuments, statues & other outdoor art in Washington, D.C.