84 REPORT OP NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1915. 



ant episode in the War ■with Mexico. Following is a brief descrip- 

 tion of these doors, which are elaborately covered with reliefs, both 

 allegorical and of men prominent in American history : 



These doors were designed and modeled by Prof. Louis Amateis, of Wash- 

 ington, and were cast in New Yorls by tbe Roman Bronze Company and Jolin 

 Williams, Inc. The work consists of a ti'ansom and two doors with an orna- 

 mental frame, all of bronze. It is 7 feet Si inches wide, and 13 feet 10 inches 

 high. The doors themselves are 7 feet Si inches wide, and 9 feet 6 inches 

 high. In the transom panel the sculptor has introduced a composition entitled 

 "Apotheosis of America." It represents America seated in a chariot drawn by 

 lions — typical of strength — led by a child, signifying the superiority of the 

 intellectual over brute force. At the sides of the chariot are figures repre- 

 senting Education, Architecture, Literature, Painting, Music, Sculpture, Min- 

 ing, Commerce, and Industry. At the right of the transom panel stands 

 Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States, and at the left Ben- 

 jamin Franklin, inventor and statesman. The medallions at the four corners 

 of the panel represent George Peabody, founder of educational institutions, 

 Ralph Waldo Emerson, philosopher and thinker, Horace Mann, educator, and 

 Johns Hopkins, philanthropist. 



In the eight panels of the doors are scenes depicting Jurisprudence, Science, 

 Fine Arts, Mining, Agriculture, Iron and Electricity, Engineering, and Naval 

 Architecture and Commerce. 



Jurisprudence is represented in the upper panel at the left by a composition 

 showing a meeting of the Supreme Court of the United States, presided over 

 by Chief Justice John Marshall. A bust of Washington is shown over the chair 

 of the Chief Justice, and statuettes at the right and left represent James 

 Madison and Daniel Webster. Above are medallions of Patrick Henry, Chief 

 Justice Roger B. Taney, and Rufus Choate. 



In the Science panel below is a group of the world's greatest scientific work- 

 ers, from the Greek astronomer, Hipparchus, inventor of the planiscope, down 

 to Charles Darwin. At the sides are figures of Oliver Wolcott Gibbs, chemist, 

 and Joseph Henry, physicist. The medallions are of James D. Dana, geologist, 

 Simon Newcomb, astronomer, Alexander Graham Bell, of the telephone, and 

 Samuel F. B. Morse, of the telegraph. 



On the third panel, the Fine Arts are represented by a group' in which are 

 Homer, Virgil, Dante, Shakespeare, Goethe, Hugo, Palestrina, Beethoven, and 

 Rossini. Above them is a flying figure of Genius. The statuettes at the sides 

 are of Edgar Allen Poe, writer, and William Thornton, architect of the original 

 Capitol. The medallions represent Gilbert Stuart, painter, and H. K. Brown, 

 sculptor. 



Mining is represented by a scene in a mine. On one side of this panel stands 

 James W. Marshall, discoverer of gold in California, and on the other, Alex- 

 ander L. Holley, metallurgist. The medallions represent E. B. Case, Clarence 

 King, geologist, and Abram S. Hewitt, statesman. 



The top panel on the right side of the door shows a harvest scene, typical 

 of Agriculture. At one side is Samuel G. Morton, ethnologist, and at the other 

 James Wilson, agriculturist. The medallions represent J. P. Norton and 

 Benjamin Bussey, agricultural chemists, and Justin S. Morrill, U. S. Senator. 



The Iron and Electricity panel depicts a scene in which iron and electric 

 workers are shown. Peter Cooper, philanthropist, stands at one side of this 

 panel and H. A. Rowland, physicist, at the other. The medallions show 



