Benjamin Franklin
- Date
- 1851–73
- Material
- Marble
- Classification
- Sculpture, stone & mineral
- Collection
- American Art
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 18 x 12 1/2 x 10 in. (45.7 x 31.8 x 25.4 cm)
weight: 48.2 lb. (21.9 kg) - Credit Line
- Gift of Judge and Mrs. Orville Richardson in memory of his parents, Minnie Willcott and Frederick Henry Richardson
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 157:1973
NOTES
Hiram Powers was an American sculptor who began his professional career by making likenesses of important political figures. Among his most popular subjects was Benjamin Franklin, whose likeness Powers first carved as early as 1844. Like many of America's young sculptors at the time, Powers modeled his work after Franklin's authoritative sculpture made by the French sculptor Jean-Antonine Houdon.
Provenance
1873 - 1973
Jason Powers Richardson (1822-1882) and Mary King Richardson, Leavenworth, KS; Frederick Henry Richardson (1862-1950) and Minnie Willcott Richardson (1877-1959), Kansas City, KS, by inheritance; Orville W. Richardson (1909-1993) and Betty J. Richardson (1925-2003), St. Louis, MO, by inheritance [1]
1973 –
Saint Louis Art Museum, Gift of Judge and Mrs. Orville Richardson [2]
Notes:
[1] Jason Powers Richardson, born in Woodstock, Vermont, was a cousin of the artist (Jason Powers Richardson’s grandmother, Mary Powers Richardson was the sister of Hiram’s father). According to donor correspondence in document file, the artist, shortly before his death, gave the bust to his relative. It then descended in the family to his son, Frederick Henry Richardson, then to his wife Minnie Willcott Richardson, then to their son, Orville Richardson.
[2] Minutes of the Acquisitions Committee of the Board of Trustees of the Administrative Board of Control, Saint Louis Art Museum, December 19, 1973.
Jason Powers Richardson (1822-1882) and Mary King Richardson, Leavenworth, KS; Frederick Henry Richardson (1862-1950) and Minnie Willcott Richardson (1877-1959), Kansas City, KS, by inheritance; Orville W. Richardson (1909-1993) and Betty J. Richardson (1925-2003), St. Louis, MO, by inheritance [1]
1973 –
Saint Louis Art Museum, Gift of Judge and Mrs. Orville Richardson [2]
Notes:
[1] Jason Powers Richardson, born in Woodstock, Vermont, was a cousin of the artist (Jason Powers Richardson’s grandmother, Mary Powers Richardson was the sister of Hiram’s father). According to donor correspondence in document file, the artist, shortly before his death, gave the bust to his relative. It then descended in the family to his son, Frederick Henry Richardson, then to his wife Minnie Willcott Richardson, then to their son, Orville Richardson.
[2] Minutes of the Acquisitions Committee of the Board of Trustees of the Administrative Board of Control, Saint Louis Art Museum, December 19, 1973.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.