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PLEDGED FOR RESTORATION 2002
The Artist and His Works
Ferdinand Pettrich was born in
Desden, Germany in 1798 into a family of wood sculptors. He developed artistically in Rome
at the school and studio of Danish sculptor Thorwaldsen. He returned to Germany and became
a court sculptor and instructor at the Academy of Fine Arts. In 1835, under the counsel of
his teacher, Thorwaldsen, he moved with his family to America, with the intention of
applying to his study some of the original types and forms of the North American Indians.
He initially worked in Washington D.C.,
where he executed, among others, the sculptures for the pedestal of the statue of George
Washington by Greenough, and the monument of the same subject for the Smithsonian
Institution.
The collection housed in the Ethnological
Missionary Museum in the Vatican is composed of thirty-three works done in plaster cast,
which were then painted red (inv. n. from 4068 to 4100). It contains four panels (9cm
high; 535 long), four statues of life-size figures, sixteen busts of Native American men
and women, and nine study models. Among the subjects represented are: famous historical
personalities, various chiefs, shamans, and Indian deputies; moments of daily life; and
significant historical events, like the Washington Congress of 1837. These works were
completed by the artist following his stay among various groups of Sioux, Creek,
Winnebago, and Sauks-Foxes Indians.
RESTORATION PROCESS:
The restoration and conservation of the
entire collection is expected to include the following processes: cleaning, small
integrations, application of stucco or plaster as necessary, retouching of the painting,
and the application of a final protection layer. Additionally, the completion and progress
of the restoration should be documented photographically.
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