Christ of the Deep, (sculpture).

Christ of the Deep, (sculpture).

Galletti, Guido, sculptor.

Figg, Eugene C., Jr., designer.

Brett, Daffin and Bishop, design firm.

Christ of the Deep, (sculpture).

Christ of the Abyss, (sculpture).

Cast 1961. Installed Aug. 25, 1965. Dedicated July 29, 1966.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: bronze filled with concrete; Base: concrete.

Sculpture: approx. H. 8 ft. 5 in. x W. 4 ft. 2 in.; Base: approx. 4 x 10 x 10 ft. (4,000 lbs.).

(Plaque on base:) IF I TAKE THE WINGS OF THE MORNING/AND DWELL IN THE UTTERMOST/OFTEN THERE YOUR HAND WILL LEAD ME/HOLD ME FAST/1927 IN MEMORIAM 1988/MICHAEL M. KEVORKIAN unsigned

Full-length standing figure of Christ with arms raised and head tilted back, submerged beneath the waters of Key Largo Marine Sanctuary.

Religion -- New Testament -- Christ

Outdoor Sculpture -- Florida -- Key Largo

Administered by National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary, 100 Ocean Drive, Key Largo, Florida 33037

Located Key Largo Dry Rocks, Approximately 3 1/2 miles off shore, Key Largo, Florida

Commissioned by European industrialist and diving equipment manufacturer, the sculpture is a cast from Guido Galletti's "Il Cristo Degli Abissi" placed underwater in the Mediterranean Sea near Genoa in 1954. The Florida "Christ of the Deep" statue was a gift of Cressi to the Underwater Society of America, who offered the statue to the Florida Park Service. The Park Service chose the site for the statue. When dedicated in 1966, the area was known as the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, later known as the Key Largo Coral Reef Preserve. The plaque on the base is a later addition.

In 2011, a replica of Guido Galletti's "Il Cristo Degli Abissi" created by Troy Lewis was installed in the Grenada Underwater Sculpture Park at Moliniere Bay. This replica of the statue was commissioned to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the sinking of Italy's Bianca C off the coast of Grenada, and it is the second copy of the statue to be installed in Grenada. In 1961, in recognition of the Grenadian aid given to the crew and passengers of the sinking Bianca C, the Costa Steamship Line presented a token of their appreciation to the people of Grenada with a life-size bronze replica of Galletti's "Il Cristo Degli Abissi," which was installed overlooking the Grenadian waterfront at St. Georges.

IAS files contain historic photographs of the Genoa sculpture and the arrival in the United States of the Florida replica. IAS files also contain related clippings, including articles from Florida Keys Magazine, 4th Quarter, 1978. pg. 14-15 and Miami Herald, Aug. 4, 1966; and base design plans. The base was designed in May 1965 by Eugene C. Figg, Jr., of Brett, Daffin and Bishop.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Florida 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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