The Puddler - Allentown, PA
Posted by: 
jiggs11
N 40° 36.245 W 075° 28.125
18T E 460342 N 4494913
Wonderful bronze sculpture of a "puddler", a steelworker who stirred molten metal in a blast furnace.
Waymark Code: WM108M8
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 03/22/2019
Views: 2
The piece, also known as "Metallurgical Worker (The Puddler)" is located in the Allentown Arts Park.
It was originally commissioned by steel magnate Charles Schwab in 1903 as one of a pair glorifying the steel industry. He paid for a steelworker to travel to Paris to sit for sculptor Jean-Leon Gerome.
The statue was installed in the art gallery of Schwab's home in New York City.
The piece was meant allegorically to represent knowledge gained through traditional hands-on methods.
TITLE: "Metallurgical Worker (The Puddler)"
ARTIST(S): Jean-Leon Gerome
DATE: 1903
MEDIUM: Bronze
CONTROL NUMBER: IAS PA001253
Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link]
PHYSICAL LOCATION:
Allentown Arts Park
5th Street
Allentown, PA
DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH:
Name in SIRIS is "The Steelworker". The Allentown Art Museum Marker gives the name as "Metallurgical Worker (The Puddler)".
SIRIS indicates a 1904 completion date. Marker indicates work was completed in 1902-03.
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