The Puritan

Discussion

FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Striding purposefully forward with a knotty walking stick and a hefty Bible, this figure of a Puritan embodies perseverance, resilience, and stern morality—qualities expressed with both admiration and a degree of humor. Augustus Saint-Gaudens first created this portrayal of Deacon Samuel Chapin, a 17th-century leader in Springfield, Massachusetts, as a large-scale monument. The work was unveiled on Thanksgiving Day 1887, underlining the importance of settler origin stories for some members of the local community. Smaller reproductions like this one proved immensely popular at the turn of the 20th century, demonstrating the expansive and enduring reach of such mythmaking.

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