About this artwork
Sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens first created this portrayal of Deacon Samuel Chapin, a 17th-century leader in Springfield, Massachusetts, as a large-scale monument. The work was unveiled on Thanksgiving Day 1887, underlining the importance of visualizing settler origin stories for some members of the local community. Striding purposefully forward with a knotty walking stick and a hefty Bible, the figure embodies perseverance, resilience, and stern morality—qualities expressed with both admiration and a degree of humor. Saint-Gaudens created this smaller, generalized version and sold it in multiples entitled The Puritan after the statue proved immensely popular amid the growing interest in a Colonial Revival at the turn of the 20th century.
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Status
- On View, Gallery 161
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Department
- Arts of the Americas
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Artist
- Augustus Saint-Gaudens
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Title
- The Puritan
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Place
- United States (Object made in)
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Date
- Modeled 1883–1886
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Medium
- Bronze
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Dimensions
- 77.5 × 50.8 × 33 cm (30 1/2 × 20 × 13 in.)
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Credit Line
- Bequest of Brooks McCormick
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Reference Number
- 2007.390
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/191185/manifest.json
Extended information about this artwork
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.
