Artist: James Edwin McBurney
Title: Abraham Lincoln Delivering the Gettysburg Address, from the 26-panel mural, Twenty-Six Historical Scenes
Date: c. 1914
Medium: ?oil on canvas |
The auditorium of Wentworth Elementary houses a mural made up of twenty-six historic paintings presenting American history in four subjects: The life of Abraham Lincoln, the life of Daniel S. Wentworth (for whom the school is named), westward expansion on land and by sea, and Native-American life.
The Lincoln narrative begins with the president’s birth in Kentucky and ends with his delivery of the Gettysburg Address. In the panel shown here (left), Lincoln stands at a podium draped with American flags and holds the famous speech in his hand while reconciled Union and Confederate soldiers listen. An excerpt of the Gettysburg Address appears in a panel below the image.
In the mural cycle, McBurney balances his series on this well-known national figure with images of lesser-known, more generic "heroes" such as pioneers and Native Americans. A series of small panels in the rear of the auditorium, for instance, shows Native Americans involved in everyday activities including building canoes, making bows, and grinding corn. |
