Butt-Millet Memorial, (sculpture).

Butt-Millet Memorial, (sculpture).

French, Daniel Chester, 1850-1931, sculptor.

Hastings, Thomas, 1860-1929, architect.

Piccirilli Brothers Marble Carving Studios, carver.

Carrere & Hastings, architectural firm.

Butt-Millet Memorial, (sculpture).

Butt-Millet Memorial Fountain, (sculpture).

Heroes of Titanic, (sculpture).

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: pink Knoxville marble; Fountain basin: Tennessee marble; Fountain basin interior: pink limestone and pebbles in concrete.

Sculpture: approx. H. 130 in. Diam. 97 in.; Base: approx. H. 12 ft. Diam. 16 ft.

(On rim of basin:) IN MEMORY OF FRANCIS DAVIS MILLET 1846-1912 AND ARCHIBALD WILLINGHAM BUTT.1866-1912. THIS MONUMENT HAS BEEN ERECTED BY THEIR FRIENDS WITH THE SANCTION OF CONGRESS. unsigned

The fountain is composed of a rectangular shaft rising from the center of a large circular fountain basin. The shaft consists of two low-relief panels, one on each side of the shaft. On the south side, there is an armor clad male figure carrying a sword and shield which represents Military Valor and Major Butt. On the north side, there is a female figure of an artist holding a palette and brush which represents Art and Francis Millet. The base is comprised of two levels; a circular fountain basin resting atop an octagonal-shaped lower section.

Homage -- Butt, Archibald Wallingham

Homage -- Millet, Francis Davis

Allegory -- Arts & Sciences -- Art

Allegory -- Civic -- Military

Dress -- Historic -- Armor

Object -- Weapon -- Sword

Dress -- Accessory -- Shield

Object -- Art Tool -- Palette

Outdoor Sculpture -- District of Columbia -- Washington

Administered by United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Washington, District of Columbia

Located Ellipse, Executive Avenue & Ellipse Drive, N.W., Washington, District of Columbia

Both Francis Davis Millet and Archibald Wallingham Butt lost their lives on the S.S. Titanic. The artist and architect donated their services for the memorial. Francis David Millet was a painter and a member of the Commission of Fine Arts. Major Archibald Willingham Butt was military aid to presisdents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft,

Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, pg. 134-135.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, District of Columbia survey, 1993.

National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, DC0008, 1989.

Monumental News, March 1913, May 1914, August 1923.

Michael Richman, SAAM curatorial assistant, 1967-1969.

Goode, James M., "Washington Sculpture: A Cultural History of Outdoor Sculpture in the Nation's Capitol," Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008, no. 3.5.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, C-4.

Monumental News, May 1914, cover.

Monumental News, August 1923, cover.

Goode, James M., "Washington Sculpture: A Cultural History of Outdoor Sculpture in the Nation's Capitol," Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008, no. 3.5.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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