Hermon Atkins MacNeil, N.A (1866-1947) (after) Ezra Cornell  Bronze on marble base 13.5 inches high, overall 12 inches high, sculpture 7.75 x 8 x 1.5 inches, base,Bronze sculpture of Ezra Cornell (1807-1874), telegraph entrepreneur and founder of Western Union, as well as the co-founder of Cornell University in 1865. This is a miniature version of the large outdoor sculpture in the Arts Quad at Cornell University, executed by MacNeil and unveiled during the Semi-Centennial Celebration in 1919 by the founder’s daughter, Mary Cornell. The imposing Cornell has an intense gaze and a flowing beard; he stands holding his hat and cane in his right hand, his left hand resting on a book atop a pedestal. The sculptor, Hermon Atkins MacNeil, had taught at Cornell 30 years earlier.
Hermon Atkins MacNeil was a sculptor known for his portraits, Native American subjects and medals. After a three-year stint as an instructor of industrial arts art at Cornell University from 1886 to 1889, he studied art in Paris. In 1896 he won the Rinehart scholarship, and spent the next four years in Rome. He first attracted notice with his sculptures of Native Americans, such as The Moqui Runner, now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago and The Sun Vow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He became a National Academician in 1906. His numerous public sculptures are located at the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C.; the Connecticut and the Missouri State Capitol Buildings, and Cornell University. Other major commissions include the McKinley Memorial, Columbus, Ohio; the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Albany, New York; and the Marquette Memorial, Chicago. MacNeil also designed a medal for the 1915 Pan Americ an Exposition in San Francisco and U.S. “Liberty†quarter, a coin in circulation from 1916 into the second quarter of the 20th century. His wife, Carol Brooks MacNeil, was also an accomplished sculptor. His works are in numerous museum collections and his papers are in the collection of the Cornell University Library.

Good condition