Description
Bronze statue of Leif Eriksson as "a man of physical beauty and vigor, in the costume of the ancient Scandinavian warrior," on a large marble pedestal, with on the sides two bronze relief. The statue was made in 1886, unveiled on 29 October 1887 and rededicated in 1989.
Inscription(s)
= LEIFR HIN HIBNI
EIRIKS SUNR
LEIF
THE DISCOVERER
SON OF ERIK
WHO SAILED FROM ICELAND
AND LANDED ON THIS CONTINENT
A.D. 1000
At the left foot, the statue is signed:
ANNE WHITNEY SC.
BOSTON - 1885.
At the right foot: (the name of the foundry)
On a bronze plaque (rededication 1989):
GENEROUS CONTRIBUTIONS BY
NORSEMEN MEMORIAL COMMITTEE,
S/N LODGES MORGENSOLEN #545
AND NORUMBEGA #506,
AND IN MEMORY OF
RICHARD ANDREW ASKILDSEN
HAVE PROVIDED FOR THE RESTORATION
AND PERMANENT MAINTENANCE OF
THE LEIF ERIKSON MEMORIAL
CITY OF BOSTON
1989
RAYMOND L. FLYNN,
MAYOR
Reliefs:
Annotation
Eben Norton, Horsford, the discoverer of baking powder and amateur archeologist, was convinced that the Vikings had sailed up the Charles to found Vinland - the lost Viking colony on the North American mainland. He even claimed to have found evidence of Viking buildings in Cambridge and Watertown. So he commissioned in 1887 a statue created by artist Ann Whitney, to commemorate the landing spot and a tower in Waltham, with a large tablet including a summary of his theory.
More info on Horsford and his ideas:
Gloria Polizzotti Greis,
Vikings on the Charles or,
The Strange Saga of Dighton Rock, Norumbega, and
Rumford Double-Acting Baking Powder (on-line here)
Old Postcard(s)
Click on the thumbnail for an enlargement.
Sculptor
Sources & Information
- Horsford, Eben N. Discovery of America by Northmen. Address at the unveiling of the statue of Leif Eriksen, delivered in Faneuil hall, Oct. 29, 1887. Boston 1888. 13 s. Illustr.
- Janet A. Headley, Anne Whitney's Leif Eriksson: A Brahmin Response to Christopher Columbus. American Art, Vol. 17, No. 2 (Summer 2003).
- Photos: Peter van der Krogt, 13 June 2003.
- BostonFamilyHistory.com
- Bizarro Boston: History
- When Vikings walked the land
- Virtual American Biographies, Anne Whitney
Tags
Locatie (N 42°20'56" - W 71°5'28") (Satellite view: Google Maps)
Item Code: usma11;
Photograph: 3 January 2007
© Website and photos: René & Peter van der Krogt
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