Talk:Grand Army Plaza
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[edit] May be a copyvio=
This seems like a copyvio from http://www.prospectpark.org/hist/main.cfm?target=../dest/gran_hist . Please do not mark it as a copyvio for a week or so, as I have contacted Alex, the submitter of the disputed material, and hope to get a response from him. I really hope we don't have to rewrite all of it. Sigh. I just worked on this page. I hate copyvios. Sigh. JesseW 03:23, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)
- I've heard from Alex, and rewrote a paragraph that seemed to me to be too close for good taste, and I don't think there's a problem now. Good news. JesseW 01:35, 8 Jan 2005 (UTC)
[edit] Older talk
Preserved old paragraph
In 1889, John H. Duncan — who was also the designer of Grant's Tomb in Manhattan — designed the Memorial Arch in a classical style similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. In 1896, Frederick MacMonnies, a well known New York sculptor, finished the three sculptural groupings on the Arch: the quadriga at the top of the arch which depicts the lady Columbia, an allegorical representation of the United States, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses accompanied by two winged Victory figures trumpeting her arrival, and two groups of soldiers, known as the Army Group and the Navy Group. The Arch was dedicated in 1892. The architectural firm of McKim, Mead and White formalized the entrance to the Park and transformed the Plaza into a more classical form.
Gosgood 03:46, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
Observation on third paragraph
The third paragraph notes "In 1896, Frederick MacMonnies, a well known New York sculptor, finished the three sculptural groupings on the Arch..." I believe 1898 is the correct date. A contemporary source, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle for Sunday, December 4, 1898 reported that the Quadriga has "been put in position on the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Arch without ceremony and without the blare of trumpets." The article, appearing on page thirty one of that paper, goes on to note that the work was commissioned by the then City of Brooklyn Park Commissioner Frank Squire in 1894 for delivery in 1896, but that the artist required two additional years to complete the commission. The article notes that Mr. MacMonnies "sent to this country his master workman, who had supervised the casting, to put the quadriga in position. This work was completed a few days ago, and the group was turned over to the city." The illustration accompanying the article shows that the pedestals for the Army and Navy groups were still vacant on that date.
An earlier article from Monday, August 15, 1898, in the same publication notes the arrival of the Quadria from Mr. MacMonnies Paris studio, where the work had been modeled and cast.
Facsimile of the original papers may be obtained at The Brooklyn Daily Eagle Online 1841 - 1902, a website maintained by The Brooklyn Public Library.
The 1896 date does seemed to persist in a number of places: the Prospect Park Alliance maintains a history of Prospect Park; its article on Grand Army Plaza cites 1896 for the date when Mr. MacMonnies was "chosen" to adorn the arch with American Civil War themes. "The Complete Illustrated Guidebook to Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden" (2001 Silver Lining Books ISBN 0760722137) also uses the 1896 date. These are recent publications that do not cite their sources, however, while the Eagle is a contemporary source on contemporary events. --Gosgood 19:12, 28 Dec 2004 (UTC)
those photos are awesome. they were taken shortly after a very expensive cleaning of the statues. unfortunately, the statues are green again and will be green for a long time. I wonder if some of the photos on this article should show the greenness. Kingturtle 04:42, 29 Sep 2003 (UTC)
[edit] Error
Where it says this-
In 1976 the Victory figure on the Quadriga on top of the Arch fell out of its chariot.
The chariot holds COLUMBIA, the winged victory figures flanking both ends are standing, so I believe this should be changed to- the Columbia figure on the Quadriga LostNYC 04:55, 24 November 2006 (UTC)
- Agree. Even the article diagrees with this "Winged Victory" nomenclature, See Grand Army Plaza#Statuary and fountain where Lady Columbia is identified with the figure in the chariot. See also original source material page 11 of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle Easter Supplement, April 18, 1897, former Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Frank Squire, who commissioned the work, describes the yet-to-be delivered Quadriga. See also The Quadriga In Its Place, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle article describing the delivery of the statue a year and eight months later. The misapplication has been in the article since August 2003 (Alex756; so familiar to article reviewers that no one thought to question it. Will change this. Gosgood 23:36, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
