Cain, (sculpture).

Cain, (sculpture).

Matzen, Herman N., 1861-1938, sculptor.

Gandola, P. M., 1889-1963, carver.

Dyer, J. Milton, architect.

Gandola Brothers Monument & Architectural Works, fabricator.

Cain, (sculpture).

Oct. 24, 1913. Installed Nov. 6, 1913.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: Bedford limestone; Base: stone.

Sculpture: approx. 9 ft. x 58 1/2 in. x 82 in.; Base: approx. 18 1/2 x 67 x 91 in. (9 tons).

Cain, clothed in an animal skin loin cloth, is seated on a large, rough rock. His proper left arm rests on his bent proper left knee. His proper right leg is bent back at the knee. Cain has deep-set eyes and a protruding forehead. He juts his head out as his upper body leans forward. His expression is hostile. The sculpture rests on a block base occupying one side of a set of courthouse steps. On the opposite side of the steps is a companion sculpture of Abel.

Religion -- Old Testament -- Cain

Outdoor Sculpture -- Ohio -- Painesville

Architectural component

Administered by Painesville Parks & Cemeteries, 7 Richmond Street, City Hall, Painesville, Ohio 44077

Located Lake County Courthouse, 47 North Park Place, Painesville, Ohio

The sculpture is one of two sculptures (for companion sculpture see IAS OH000550) created by the artist for the Lake County Courthouse. The pair of sculptures cost $5,000. Carving work was done by P. M. Gandola of the Gandola Brothers Monument & Architectural Works. The artist stated he had "chosen to embody in two figures, that which makes a court house necessary. The one [Cain], the absolute physical and impulsive creature, falsely termed criminal, and the other [Abel], gifted with mind and judgment, who should assume the responsibilities of turning super-physical forces into useful channels...." The artist hoped the sculptures would further the growing movement for prison reform. IAS files contain a related excerpt from The Lake County Historical Society Quarterly 21 (June 1979): pg. 5-6.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Ohio, Cleveland survey, 1994.

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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