Original Robert Gould Shaw Memorial at Boston Common

The original casting of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ Robert Gould Shaw and the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Infantry Memorial—the name used on the official 1897 printed dedication program—is on display at Boston Common just below the stairs to the Massachusetts State House. The sculpture depicts Shaw and the men of the 54th as they march down Beacon Street on their way to Confederate territory. However, though Shaw’s only noteworthy accomplishment as a soldier was being one of the first to lead black troops, and without having done so he certainly wouldn’t be remembered today, the original intent of the memorial was to honor Shaw only, for rest assured that back in the early 1880s that there were no rich white men attempting to raise money for a memorial to black soldiers. It was Shaw’s parents, both ardent abolitionists, who insisted that the troops be included. Without the 54th, Shaw would be just another dead colonel whose name was lost to history (without the 54th he probably wouldn’t even be a colonel).

Saint-Gaudens was not completely satisfied with the original sculpture, so he continued to tinker with it until he came up with a version that he liked—same as George Lucas constantly updating his original Star Wars films. He created a plaster casting of the new sculpture, but no bronze casting was ever made during his lifetime. It wasn’t until 1997 that a bronze was made for Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park. The National Park Service has the original clay sculpture stored in a building on the park property (it is not open to the public).

The changes are minimal, and if the two sculptures were sitting side-by-side you’d really have to pay attention to see the differences. He added some long-leaf pine in the bottom left corner to symbolize South Carolina, the state where Shaw and many of his men met their deaths while assaulting Fort Wagner. There is more detail in the flag (left side above the troops’ heads) and in the angel at the top of the sculpture. More noticeable is Shaw’s sword. In the original, the blade width is parallel to the ground so that the viewer sees the thin edge, whereas in the new version the width of the blade faces the viewer. There is also an inscription at the bottom of the new version that is absent on the original. (The sculpture appears to taper in the top photograph, but that is just a result of lens distortion. Also, the color differences between the two photos on this page are simply due to the amount of sun shining on the sculptures.)