July 14th, 2011
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/14/2011
Extraordinary bronze bust of John Hay, 1838-1905, American Statesman, Private Secretary to President Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of State under President's McKinley and Roosevelt, and International Diplomat. For a few months during the Civil War, Hay served in the Union army under Generals David Hunter and Quincy Adams Gillmore. He rose to the rank of major and was later brevetted lieutenant colonel and colonel. Hay's diary and writings during the Civil War are basic historical sources. Some have credited Hay with being the real author of Lincoln's Letter to Mrs. Bixby, consoling her for the loss of her sons in the war. Hay was present when Lincoln died after being shot at Ford's Theatre. Hay and John Nicolay, Lincoln's other private secretary, wrote a formal 10-volume biography of Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln: A History, 1890) and prepared an edition of his collected works. As Secretary of State and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris of 1898, which ended the Spanish-American War. Hay continued serving as Secretary of State after Theodore Roosevelt succeeded McKinley, serving until his own death in 1905. He also established the open door policy in China. This is a superbly executed bronze bust, sculpted by Gorham sculptor Phillip Ben Johnson, who had a 50 year career at the Gorham Foundry as a sculptor and craftsman. Johnson has signed the bust "Ben Johnson", and has the Gorham Foundry mark as well. The bust, c. 1915-1920, measures 16" tall, and is in superb condition with the original patina. The detail in the face shows the talent and expertise of both Johnson and the Gorham Foundry. There are only 3 or 4 Hay busts extant, being at the John Hay Library at Brown University in Rhode Island, and an example at the National McKinley Birthplace Memorial. The example at the John Hay Library was executed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, which has virtually identical facial features to this example. No other Hay busts have ever, as far as we can determine, ever come to market. A true museum piece.
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