Thomas Crawford

One of the leading 19th-century American neoclassical sculptors, “Thomas Crawford was the only one of the first generation of American neoclassical sculptors to become known as master of public statuary.” (Tolles, 34) He was born in New York City and spent most of his career in Rome, Italy with only brief trips to the United States including in 1844, 1849, and 1856. His most noted sculpture is now on the top of the United States Capitol dome, The Statue of Freedom, a colossal bronze standing 19 1/2 feet high and weighing 7 1/2 tons,it has stood overlooking Washington, D.C., since 1863