A Memorial to the Four Chaplains, (sculpture).

A Memorial to the Four Chaplains, (sculpture).

Nivola, Costantino, 1911-1988, sculptor.

A Memorial to the Four Chaplains, (sculpture).

Tragedy of the Sinking of the Dorchester, (sculpture).

Dedicated Sept. 25, 1955.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: concrete and metal, painted; Basin: concrete and metal.

Sculpture: approx. 15 x 19 x 20 ft.; Basin: approx. 2 x 30 x 30 ft.

A Y-shaped abstract sculpture representing a symbolic keel of a ship, is installed within a circular pool inside a larger, irregular-shaped pool. Within the larger pool stand four joined panels, each bearing an abstract design in relief. The first panel represents the sculptor's feeling of the harmony of man in his relationship to God and the Universe. The second panel represents the family. The third panel represents the idea of not being required to pray in an ornate church. The fourth panel depicts the source of Man's thought during all his recorded history.

Homage -- Fox, George Lansing

Homage -- Poling, Clark Vandersoll

Homage -- Goode, Alexander David

Homage -- Washington, John Patrick

Architecture -- Boat -- Dorchester

Architecture -- Boat -- Freighter

Outdoor Sculpture -- Virginia -- Falls Church

National Memorial Park, 7400 Lee Highway, Falls Church, Virginia 22042

Erected under the auspices of the National Conference of Christians and Jews and the Reserve Officers Association of the United States. Sculpture is part of a memorial to George Lansing Fox, Clark Vandersoll Poling, Alexander David Goode, and John Patrick Washington, four chaplains on the troop transport Dorchester. When a submarine torpedoed the vessel on Feb. 3, 1943, they gave away their life jackets to remain on the ship to comfort and help others and went down with the ship. IAS files contain transcription of nearby commemorative plaque.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Virginia survey, 1995.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, pg. 184.

Michael Richman, SAAM curatorial assistant, 1967-1969.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, pg. 184, E-3.

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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