Saturday, February 24, 2007

Statue of Victory

This statue of Victory is part of the Sherman Monument located on the south east corner of Central Park. The monument depicts Victory leading General William Tecumseh Sherman seated on his horse coming home from war. General Sherman was one of the generals who led the Union (northern states) against the Confederates (southern states) in the American Civil War .

The monument was created by August Saint-Gaudens in 1892-1903. Saint-Gaudens was one of the most important American sculptors of the Beaux-Arts era.

Victory is a common symbolic figure used in many war monuments to signify triumph. The figure is based on the Greek goddess Nike. One of the most famous of these statues is the Winged Victory at the Louvre in Paris.