2007 Bronze Door Proposals

Solar Eclipse Photograph Album (1889); and San Francisco Panoramic Photograph (1878)The Solar Eclipse album provides meticulous documentation of the important United States expedition of 1889 on board the USS Pensacola, to the West African coast, to provide the first complete photographic record of a full solar eclipse. The album contains 131 prints of 5x7 photographs, but it was in extremely fragile condition and was virtually disintegrating. Conservation of the album included surface cleaning and stabilization of all the photographs, repairing the binding, boxing the album, and digitally copying the images.

Perhaps the most important photograph in the Museum's collection, the panoramic photograph of San Francisco, was taken from California Street Hill by Eadweard Muybridge in 1878. The image took approximately five hours to complete and is one of only seven panoramic prints in existence. It is considered by many photography historians to be an unrivaled photographic feat of the period. Conservation included surface cleaning and stabilization of all thirteen albumen prints, repair or replacement of all hinges, replacing the spine, repairing and stabilizing (or replacing) the leather folio cover, and digitally copying the image. FUNDED IN 2007.

Shout for the Boy

Know locally as Shouting boy, this iconic piece was on display at The Mariners' Museum from 1933 until its demise in 1977. This revered piece was sculpted by Harriet Hyatt Mayor, sister and mentor of beloved Anna Hyatt Huntington. Anna donated the piece to the Museum in 1933; it is the only piece by Harriet in the Museum's collection. Shouting Boy was prominently displayed on a custom-built island in Kettle Pond for the better part of five decades, but after several bouts of vandalism, the Museum was forced to retire the statue and declare it a "total loss." It was proposed that a replica sculpture be made based on the eroded remains and photographic documentation. The replica will be displayed in a more prominent and protected location to once again beseech visitors to "Come on in!" FUNDED IN 2007.

Carving Figurehead

March 2, 2007, marked the 200th anniversary of the passage of the act prohibiting the importation of slaves. Unfortunately, its passage had little real impact on the trade and in 1839 a group of Africans aboard the slave-ship La Amistad seized control of the ship and took an epic journey through the American judicial system to regain their freedom. As a replica of the historic ship was being built, artist Stephanie Rocknak acquired several pieces of iroko, a wood that is native to Sierra Leone, which is the home of La Amistad's former captives. From it, she created a hauntingly beautiful carving that conveys a man's struggle to escape La Amistad and the slave trade itself. The carving is currently on loan to the Museum and is traveling with our well-regarded exhibition, Captive Passage: The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Making of the Americas. If selected, this piece would have become a permanent part of the Museum's continuing effort to tell this important story in American maritime history. For further information about this carving, contact Jeanne Willoz-Egnor at 757-591-7768 or JEgnor@MarinersMuseum.org.

Battle of Hampton Roads Paintings

Accurate depictions of the events of March 8, 1862, are rare. This stunning painting of the USS Cumberland's heroic last moments, by award-winning artist and author James Gurney (know for his wildly popular Dinotopia books), was commissioned by the National Geographic Society for its March 2006 issue and was being offered to the Museum by the artist. This painting would have been used to enhance the Museum's collection of artifacts and archival material relating to the Battle of Hampton Roads and it would have been featured in an upcoming exhibition within the USS Monitor Center on the USS Cumberland.

Gurney also offered this detailed study of the USS Monitor and CSS Virginia to The Mariners' Museum for display within the USS Monitor Center. It was also originally commissioned by the National Geographic Society for inclusion in its March 2006 issue. The painting provides an accurate rendering of the interior of CSS Virginia, illustrating how the wooden steam-auxiliary sailing frigate USS Merrimack was converted into the iron-clad CSS Virginia. This provides stark contrast to the image of purpose-built iron-hulled USS Monitor. This painting would also have been a perfect addition to the Museum's already world-class collection of materials relating to the Battle of Hampton Roads and will be on permanent display within the USS Monitor Center exhibition, Ironclad Revolution. For further information on these striking paintings, contact Anna Holloway at 757-591-7740 or AHolloway@MarinersMuseum.org