Recording Angel, (sculpture).

Recording Angel, (sculpture).

Unknown (Italian), sculptor.

Recording Angel, (sculpture).

Dedicated Nov. 10, 1889.

Sculpture: Carrara marble; Base: sandstone and granite.

Sculpture: approx. 5 x 2 x 2 ft.; Base: approx. 11 x 6 x 6 ft. (1,200 lbs.).

(Incised on base, front, top:) SEAL OF THE COUNTY OF MONROE MICHIGAN (On base, front, in raised letters:) CENTENNIAL (On base, left, in raised letters:) OCT. 15, 1788 (On base, right, in raised letters:) OCT. 15, 1888. (Incised on third base, front:) "MAY THE MEMBERS OF YOUR SOCIETY IN AMERICA,/ANIMATED ALONE BY THE PURE SPIRIT OF CHRISTIANITY,/AND STILL CONDUCTING THEMSELVES AS THE FAITHFUL/SUBJECTS OF OUR FREE GOVERNMENT, ENJOY EVERY TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL FELICITY."/GEORGE WASHINGTON unsigned

An angel holding a writing instrument and an open ledger stands on pedestal and tiered base. The figure wears a flowing robe with wings and has long hair with a star perched on the forehead. The ledger is held in the proper left hand and the writing implement in the proper right hand. The base is a series of rough-hewn and decorative elements which include four columns, an ornate cap and the Seal of the County of Monroe.

Religion -- Angel

Literature -- Washington

Outdoor Sculpture -- Michigan -- Monroe

St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Church, Elm Street at Monroe Street, Monroe, Michigan

St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Church was called St. Antoine aux Riviere Raisin when it was founded in 1788. The sculpture was erected in commemoration of the parish's centennial in 1888, though the work did not arrive in Monroe until 1889. The quote from George Washington in the inscription was taken from Washington's reply to a letter of congratulations received from the Catholics of American on March 15, 1790. The names on the three sides of the base include church and civic leaders and presumably parishioners or donors to the monument. The sculpture and base were cleaned and the sculpture was repaired shortly prior to the SOS! survey. IAS files contain excerpts from "St. Antoine/St. Mary Parish, The Cross Leads Generations On: A Bicentennial Retrospect," 1988, which includes the names listed on the base. St. Mary's Church complex is listed on the National Register of Historic places.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Michigan survey, 1993.

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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