Slaughter of the Innocents, (sculpture).

Slaughter of the Innocents, (sculpture).

Zeller, August, 1863-1918, sculptor.

Slaughter of the Innocents, (sculpture).

Sculpture: white Carrara marble; Base: metal.

Sculpture: 44 1/2 x 44 x 19 1/2 in.; Base: 26 x 47 x 21 1/2 in.

This depiction of a terrified mother clutching her baby commemorates the massacre of infants ordered by King Herod when Christ was born. The image of the mother was the artist's mother who had died seven years earlier.

Religion -- New Testament -- Slaughter of the Innocents

St. Louis University, Museum of Art, 3663 Lindell Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri 63103

Formerly located Bordentown Cemetery, Bordentown, New Jersey 1918-1973.

Gift of Dougherty, Charles H., Kirkwood, Missouri 2004

The sculpture won a $5,000 award from the National Academy of Design in 1884. The sculpture was created when the artist was only eighteen years old, and it was to be used as a marker for his mother's grave. The statue was later removed from the grave site of the artist and his parent because of fear of vandalism. It was donated to St. Louis University Museum of Art by the artist's great grandson in 2004.

Dougherty, Charles H., 2004.

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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