Statue of George Washington
Dressed in Masonic Regalia
"George Washington (alternately titled George
Washington as Master Mason) is a public artwork by American sculptor Donald De
Lue, located on the grounds of the Indiana Statehouse, in Indianapolis, Indiana,
United States. The bronze statue of George Washington that occupies the Indiana
Statehouse south lawn is one of several copies of a 1959 original wax cast at
the Modern Art Foundry in Long Island, New York
The statue depicts Washington dressed in breeches with an apron and medallion
decorated with Masonic symbols. Washington holds a tri-cornered hat in the crook
of his proper left arm, and a gavel in his proper right hand. He wears an open
overcoat with buttons and has a short podium to his proper right. Washington's
attire depicts the first President as he may have looked when he laid the
cornerstone for the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The sculpture is mounted
upon a stepped, inscribed granite base.
The base of the sculpture is inscribed with the following:
* Northwest corner of sculpture: Donald De Lue Sc. 1959
* Northeast corner of sculpture, east side, lower rear: The Modern Art Foundry,
Inc. (Foundry mark) 1986 New York, New York
* Front/south side of base: GEORGE WASHINGTON PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES/1789-1797; First in War, First in Peace, First in the Hearts of His
Countrymen
* West side of base: Observe good faith and justice toward all nations.
Cultivate peace and/harmony with all. Religion and/morality enjoin this
conduct./George Washington
* East side of base: My attachment to the Society of which we are members will
dispose me to contribute my best endeavors to promote the honor and interests of
the Craft./ George Washington, Freemason 1753–1799
* North side of base: (Masonic symbol, square and compass) Presented to the
People of Indiana From the Freesmasons of Indiana/George Washington
Commission/The Grand Lodge Free and Accepted Masons of the State of Indiana/May
19, 1987
The dimensions of the statue are as follows: 9 feet 4 inches (2.84 meters) by 46
inches (120 centimeters) x 36 inches (91 centimeters). The total weight of the
statue is 900 pounds (410 kilograms). The granite base is 5 feet (1.5 meters)
tall and weighs approximately 9 short tons (8.2 metric tons). The Statehouse's
version of De Lue's bronze statue was a gift of the Grand Lodge of Free and
Accepted Masons of Indiana, dedicated May 19, 1987. This statue appeared at
similar Masonic monuments in the following locations:
* Detroit, Michigan (1966)
* Lansing, Michigan(1982)
* Lexington, Massachusetts
* Alexandria, Virginia (1966)
* Wallingford, Connecticut (1965)
* Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens, New York
* New Orleans, Louisiana (1960)
George Washington as Master Mason was sculpted initially from a wax mold at
Donald De Lue's studio in Leonard, New Jersey, and copyrighted in 1959. This
sculpture was re-cast in 1986 and dedicated May 19, 1987 by the grand master of
the Freemasons of Indiana, J.C. Paxton of Warsaw, Indiana. The total cost of the
gift was $100,000. Lieutenant Governor John Mutz accepted the statue on behalf
of the state. George Washington as Master Mason was inspired by sculptor Bryant
Baker's work, Illustrious Brother George Washington, which also depicts the
subject in a similar pose with Masonic iconography." - Wikipedia
