I happened to be in Columbus Square yesterday. For other business. I've been there a few times, enough to know the area, but I had passed by the statue of Christopher Columbus all those times. Just stopped to take a better look at it yesterday. Because I didn't yet know about it coming from the Columbian Exhibition in Chicago―the same World's Fair at which the Ferris wheel was introduced―the "1893" date on the base looked weird to me. After all, it wasn't like Columbus was doing a hell of a lot to commemorate by that time.
2 comments:
So this one is a bronze reproduction of the original silver statue cast by Gorham, eh? While Christopher Columbus is no longer held in the high regard he was in 1893 it's nice there's a quiet spot here and there to commemorate his exploits. If you've ever seen just how small were the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria you have to be amazed at what those explorers managed to do. Too bad he didn't just retyurn to Spain to let them know it wasn't India they'd found after all and otherwise there wasn't much to see.
I never knew much about the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 until I read Pynchon's masterpiece Against the Day when the Chums of Chance fly into the White City in their hot air balloon. There are some pretty amazing pictures of the exhibition as well as descriptions of the event. Maybe you've seen them. Maybe you've read the book too - it's pretty unforgettable.
I wonder where the original Gorham statue is now. Well-guarded wherever it is, I imagine. As with gold, a statue made of silver is too valuable to simply be left out in the open. And while I can see why the reputation of Christopher Columbus has gone down in recent years, he's also a fascinating epic figure. Life is complex.
Second time in my recent posts that that Pynchon novel has come up. It's not one that I've gotten to yet, but the idea of touring the scene in a hot-air balloon sounds kind of promisin.
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