|
 George Mason Posted by:  robert
N 38° 49.820 W 077° 18.498
18S E 299632 N 4300479
Located on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia
Waymark Code: WM14MK
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 01/13/2007
Views: 26
Dedicated April 12, 1996, this statue of George Mason stands in front of the Johnson Center on the campus of George Mason University.
About the statue (from the statue website)
On April 12, 1996, a seven-foot statue of patriot and university namesake, George Mason, was dedicated. The statue, sculpted by nationally acclaimed artist Wendy M. Ross, was commissioned by the George Mason Fund for the Arts and the Arts Gala Committee with contributions from the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution, students, and friends.
The statue portrays the great statesman presenting his handwritten first draft of the Virginia Declaration of Rights in 1776. The writing table on Mason’s right replicates the original, which can be found in the study at Gunston Hall, his home in Fairfax County, VA. The three books on the table—works by Hume, Locke, and Rousseau—depict sources of Mason’s thoughts on individual liberty. The statue serves as a constant reminder of the ideals most important to both George Mason the man and George Mason University: freedom and learning.
About George Mason (from Wikipedia):
George Mason (December 11, 1725 – October 7, 1792) was a United States patriot, statesman, and delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention. He is called the "Father of the Bill of Rights". For all of these reasons he is considered to be one of the "Founding Fathers" of the United States.
Mason wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights, which detailed specific rights of citizens. In addition to anti-federalist Patrick Henry, he was later a leader of those who pressed for the addition of explicitly stated individual rights as part of the U.S. Constitution, and did not sign the document mainly because it did not contain such a statement. His efforts eventually succeeded in convincing the Federalists to modify the Constitution and add the Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments of the Constitution). The Bill of Rights is based on Mason's earlier Virginia Declaration of Rights.Visit Instructions:
You must have visited the site in person, not online.
|