RARE Bronze BUST Of GEORGE WASHINGTON By LATE US ' S FRANK GASPARRO
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:27494625 | Style: Americana |
| Original/Reproduction: Original | Age: 1982 |
| Color: Brown | Maker: GASPARRO |
| Country/Region of Origin: United States |
VERY RARE 1982 BRONZE BUST OF GEORGE WASHINGTON BY THE LATE UNITED STATES MINT'S CHIEF ENGRAVER FRANK GASPARRO
Frank Gasparro was the tenth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, holding this position from February 23, 1965, to January 16, 1981. Before that, he was Assistant Engraver. The bronze on offer by Gasparro was executed in 1982 and very few examples were cast by Gasparro, with only one other example found currently on the Internet - and is found in the Am...erican Philosophical Museum.
Frank Gasparro (August 26, 1909 – September 29, 2001) was the tenth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, holding this position from February 23, 1965, to January 16, 1981. Before that, he was Assistant Engraver. He designed both sides of the Susan B. Anthony dollar, both sides of the Eisenhower Dollar (with the exception of the Bicentennial issues of 1975–1976), the Lincoln Memorial reverse of the cent (minted from 1959 to 2008), and the reverse of the Kennedy half dollar.
Art of Frank Gasparro: 10th United States Mint Chief Engraver Gasparro was hired by the United States Mint in December 1942 under Chief Engraver John R. Sinnock. Gasparro's first major successful coin design was his redesign of the reverse of the Lincoln cent as part of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, while he was Assistant Engraver at the Philadelphia Mint. Gasparro's design was selected from a group of 23 designs prepared by the Mint's engraving staff to replace the Wheat cent produced by the Mint from 1909 to 1958. His original design included the words "Lincoln Memorial" and 13 stars around the rim of the coin, which he removed at the request of staff at the Mint.
Despite the complaints of his superiors, the design retained his initials to the right of the monument as well as the image of Lincoln seated in the monument, making it the first American coin to have the same likeness on both sides of the coin. Gasparro would often tell cashiers that he was a sculptor, and when asked where to find his work, he would reply, "It's in your pocket." By the time of his death, Gasparro's design had appeared on the more than 100 billion pennies produced by the Mint.
A similar Bust for President GEORGE WASHINGTON issued in 1977 by the FRANKLIN MINT is NOT by Gasparro and stands merely 3 1/4" tall. It weighs approximately 16 Oz and is made of bronze by the Franklin Mint, which was a privately held mint no longer operating and sells for $150. The FRANKLIN MINT example was made in the amount of untold thousands.
THE SUSAN B. ANTHONY DOLLAR
Gasparro designed both the obverse and reverse of the Susan B. Anthony dollar, which he called his "top achievement", though the coin was largely rejected by the American public.
Asked to produce a design for the Susan B. Anthony dollar, Gasparro was able to find two photos of women's suffrage leader, one at age 28 and the other when she was 84. He initially chose the portrait of the younger Anthony, but widespread consensus was that the design made her look too pretty. His design using the older photo was accepted. While Gasparro felt that the Anthony dollar was his "top achievement", the coin was largely rejected by the public, which complained that the coin was too similar to the Washington Quarter.]
As the Mint's Chief Engraver from 1965 to 1981, Gasparro also created designs for the reverse of the Kennedy half dollar, for which he took painstaking attention to the details of the design of the Seal of the President of the United States, making the words "E pluribus unum" more prominent. Other designs by Gasparro included medals for Winston Churchill, Albert Gallatin, Douglas MacArthur and Sam Rayburn, along with the presidential medals for all Presidents from Lyndon B. Johnson to Ronald Reagan and numerous foreign coins produced by the Mint.
One of his best known works was the obverse of the Congressional gold medal for John Wayne, widely bought by the public in bronze.
A collection of art of Frank Gasparro was given to the National Numismatic Collection (NMC) and it consisted of 115 drawings, plaster models, photographs, newspaper clippings and ephemera collected by, and related to, Frank Gasparro, the 10th United States Mint Chief Engraver. Christina Hansen, Gasparro’s daughter, donated the collection in 2009 to the National Numismatic Collection (NNC).
The Gasparro collection holds a few finished presentation drawings and cast plaster coin models. Most images are rough sketches based on one of two themes: Lady Liberty and eagles. The eagles hold branches in their beaks and are surrounded by stars. Some soar in flight and others perch on rocks. Liberty’s face gazes both left and right and may wear a crown or liberty cap.
Each drawing, whether of Liberty or an eagle, changes ever so slightly. This body of work is a testament to the technological tools available to the 20th- century graphic artist. In these sketches Gasparro was not observing a live model in his studio or creating images with a computer. The designer instead used photographs from magazines and newspaper as his muse, and Xeroxes and tracing paper to make quick changes. Each time Gasparro xeroxed an image, he made a change to the drawing. A piece of tracing paper made it easy to turn the head of Liberty from facing right to left. Each drawing gives us evidence of Gasparro’s progression of an idea.
By viewing Gasparro’s drawings as a series, one is able to follow the evolution of the coin design from the artist’s perspective. This body of work offers a visual path into the thought processes of a working 20th-century graphic artist. It did not matter that some of these “ideas” did not become coins. It is the concrete visualization of the artist’s process that gives this collection its historic value.
Frank Gasparro was born August 26, 1909, on the centennial of President Lincoln’s birth and by chance, the same year Victor David Brenner put Abraham Lincoln’s portrait on the obverse of the penny. Fifty years later in 1959, the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, Frank Gasparro placed the Lincoln Memorial (replacing the previous wheat ears design) on the reverse side of the Lincoln penny.
Douglas Martin of The New York Times quoted Christina Hansen (Gasparro’s daughter) in Gasparro’s obituary, “Frank Gasparro, 92, of Mint; Art Is on 100 Billion Pennies, ” October 3, 2001, “…he originally aspired to make sculptures like those of Rodin and Michelangelo, but came to take pride in his billions of lowly pennies. He was known to show cashiers the reverse side of a penny and announce that he had designed it.” Gasparro’s Lincoln Memorial Reverse remained on the penny for 49 years. Used and collected by generations, it may be Gasparro’s very long fifteen minutes of fame. Gasparro’s coin designs also include the presidential coat of arms on the Kennedy half reverse; the obverse and reverse of the Eisenhower dollar; the Susan B. Anthony dollar; and multitudes of medals and commemoratives that he continued to design for the United States Mint and private mints after his retirement from federal service.
Robyn Einhorn, Collection Manager of the National Numismatic Collection, provided some of the information mentioned above.
The bust on offer can be found in the AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL MUSEUM within Philosophical Hall - the historic building at 104 5th Street in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US. Located near Independence Hall, the building has, for over 200 years, been the headquarters of the American Philosophical Society.
The same miniature bust depicting head and part of shoulders of George Washington, with his hair in a ponytail and wearing cravat is marked "F. Gasparro ©1982" on back -just like the bust on offer here.
This bust was produced by Philadelphia-born sculptor Frank Gasparro in 1982, presumably to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Washington. Gasparro started his career as a junior engraver with the U.S. Mint in 1942 and rose to become lead engraver. He is perhaps best known for designing the reverse side of the Lincoln penny. The bronze in the American Philosophical Society is made of Bronze and measures 8" x 5" x 4.5" in size. and was a gift of Dr. Owen Gingerich, 22 April 2004.Owen Jay Gingerich is professor emeritus of astronomy and of the history of science at Harvard University and a senior astronomer emeritus at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. In addition to his research and teaching, he has written many books on the history of astronomy.
SOLD AS SHOWN ABOVE - SOLD "AS IS." NO RETURNS.
Wear and original patina is consistent with age and use but overall work displays nicely. Please see all photos as they are part of the description. FRANKLIN MINT 3 1/4" tall example is pictured for informational purposes only and is not for sale. Photo of GASPARRO is courtesy of US MINT.
SHIPPING, HANDLING, INSURANCE & TRACKING IS $30.00 for US sales. Includes 15% EBAY/ PAYPAL SELLER'S SHIPPING SURCHARGE FEE.
WE DO NOT SHIP BY UPS as they rip open boxes insured at $100 or more seeking to deny shipments containing antiques. ALL SHIPMENTS NORMALLY MADE THROUGH USPS - BUT WE RESERVE THE RIGHTTO SEND BY FEDERAL EXPRESS GROUND INSURED. OVERSEAS pay $65.00 on this for REGISTERED or MINIMALLY INSURED air post with safe signatured delivery for easy foreign CUSTOMS CLEARANCE. GA STATE residents must pay 8% STATE SALES TAX.
Frank Gasparro was the tenth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, holding this position from February 23, 1965, to January 16, 1981. Before that, he was Assistant Engraver. The bronze on offer by Gasparro was executed in 1982 and very few examples were cast by Gasparro, with only one other example found currently on the Internet - and is found in the Am...erican Philosophical Museum.
Frank Gasparro (August 26, 1909 – September 29, 2001) was the tenth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, holding this position from February 23, 1965, to January 16, 1981. Before that, he was Assistant Engraver. He designed both sides of the Susan B. Anthony dollar, both sides of the Eisenhower Dollar (with the exception of the Bicentennial issues of 1975–1976), the Lincoln Memorial reverse of the cent (minted from 1959 to 2008), and the reverse of the Kennedy half dollar.
Art of Frank Gasparro: 10th United States Mint Chief Engraver Gasparro was hired by the United States Mint in December 1942 under Chief Engraver John R. Sinnock. Gasparro's first major successful coin design was his redesign of the reverse of the Lincoln cent as part of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, while he was Assistant Engraver at the Philadelphia Mint. Gasparro's design was selected from a group of 23 designs prepared by the Mint's engraving staff to replace the Wheat cent produced by the Mint from 1909 to 1958. His original design included the words "Lincoln Memorial" and 13 stars around the rim of the coin, which he removed at the request of staff at the Mint.
Despite the complaints of his superiors, the design retained his initials to the right of the monument as well as the image of Lincoln seated in the monument, making it the first American coin to have the same likeness on both sides of the coin. Gasparro would often tell cashiers that he was a sculptor, and when asked where to find his work, he would reply, "It's in your pocket." By the time of his death, Gasparro's design had appeared on the more than 100 billion pennies produced by the Mint.
A similar Bust for President GEORGE WASHINGTON issued in 1977 by the FRANKLIN MINT is NOT by Gasparro and stands merely 3 1/4" tall. It weighs approximately 16 Oz and is made of bronze by the Franklin Mint, which was a privately held mint no longer operating and sells for $150. The FRANKLIN MINT example was made in the amount of untold thousands.
THE SUSAN B. ANTHONY DOLLAR
Gasparro designed both the obverse and reverse of the Susan B. Anthony dollar, which he called his "top achievement", though the coin was largely rejected by the American public.
Asked to produce a design for the Susan B. Anthony dollar, Gasparro was able to find two photos of women's suffrage leader, one at age 28 and the other when she was 84. He initially chose the portrait of the younger Anthony, but widespread consensus was that the design made her look too pretty. His design using the older photo was accepted. While Gasparro felt that the Anthony dollar was his "top achievement", the coin was largely rejected by the public, which complained that the coin was too similar to the Washington Quarter.]
As the Mint's Chief Engraver from 1965 to 1981, Gasparro also created designs for the reverse of the Kennedy half dollar, for which he took painstaking attention to the details of the design of the Seal of the President of the United States, making the words "E pluribus unum" more prominent. Other designs by Gasparro included medals for Winston Churchill, Albert Gallatin, Douglas MacArthur and Sam Rayburn, along with the presidential medals for all Presidents from Lyndon B. Johnson to Ronald Reagan and numerous foreign coins produced by the Mint.
One of his best known works was the obverse of the Congressional gold medal for John Wayne, widely bought by the public in bronze.
A collection of art of Frank Gasparro was given to the National Numismatic Collection (NMC) and it consisted of 115 drawings, plaster models, photographs, newspaper clippings and ephemera collected by, and related to, Frank Gasparro, the 10th United States Mint Chief Engraver. Christina Hansen, Gasparro’s daughter, donated the collection in 2009 to the National Numismatic Collection (NNC).
The Gasparro collection holds a few finished presentation drawings and cast plaster coin models. Most images are rough sketches based on one of two themes: Lady Liberty and eagles. The eagles hold branches in their beaks and are surrounded by stars. Some soar in flight and others perch on rocks. Liberty’s face gazes both left and right and may wear a crown or liberty cap.
Each drawing, whether of Liberty or an eagle, changes ever so slightly. This body of work is a testament to the technological tools available to the 20th- century graphic artist. In these sketches Gasparro was not observing a live model in his studio or creating images with a computer. The designer instead used photographs from magazines and newspaper as his muse, and Xeroxes and tracing paper to make quick changes. Each time Gasparro xeroxed an image, he made a change to the drawing. A piece of tracing paper made it easy to turn the head of Liberty from facing right to left. Each drawing gives us evidence of Gasparro’s progression of an idea.
By viewing Gasparro’s drawings as a series, one is able to follow the evolution of the coin design from the artist’s perspective. This body of work offers a visual path into the thought processes of a working 20th-century graphic artist. It did not matter that some of these “ideas” did not become coins. It is the concrete visualization of the artist’s process that gives this collection its historic value.
Frank Gasparro was born August 26, 1909, on the centennial of President Lincoln’s birth and by chance, the same year Victor David Brenner put Abraham Lincoln’s portrait on the obverse of the penny. Fifty years later in 1959, the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, Frank Gasparro placed the Lincoln Memorial (replacing the previous wheat ears design) on the reverse side of the Lincoln penny.
Douglas Martin of The New York Times quoted Christina Hansen (Gasparro’s daughter) in Gasparro’s obituary, “Frank Gasparro, 92, of Mint; Art Is on 100 Billion Pennies, ” October 3, 2001, “…he originally aspired to make sculptures like those of Rodin and Michelangelo, but came to take pride in his billions of lowly pennies. He was known to show cashiers the reverse side of a penny and announce that he had designed it.” Gasparro’s Lincoln Memorial Reverse remained on the penny for 49 years. Used and collected by generations, it may be Gasparro’s very long fifteen minutes of fame. Gasparro’s coin designs also include the presidential coat of arms on the Kennedy half reverse; the obverse and reverse of the Eisenhower dollar; the Susan B. Anthony dollar; and multitudes of medals and commemoratives that he continued to design for the United States Mint and private mints after his retirement from federal service.
Robyn Einhorn, Collection Manager of the National Numismatic Collection, provided some of the information mentioned above.
The bust on offer can be found in the AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL MUSEUM within Philosophical Hall - the historic building at 104 5th Street in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US. Located near Independence Hall, the building has, for over 200 years, been the headquarters of the American Philosophical Society.
The same miniature bust depicting head and part of shoulders of George Washington, with his hair in a ponytail and wearing cravat is marked "F. Gasparro ©1982" on back -just like the bust on offer here.
This bust was produced by Philadelphia-born sculptor Frank Gasparro in 1982, presumably to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Washington. Gasparro started his career as a junior engraver with the U.S. Mint in 1942 and rose to become lead engraver. He is perhaps best known for designing the reverse side of the Lincoln penny. The bronze in the American Philosophical Society is made of Bronze and measures 8" x 5" x 4.5" in size. and was a gift of Dr. Owen Gingerich, 22 April 2004.Owen Jay Gingerich is professor emeritus of astronomy and of the history of science at Harvard University and a senior astronomer emeritus at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. In addition to his research and teaching, he has written many books on the history of astronomy.
SOLD AS SHOWN ABOVE - SOLD "AS IS." NO RETURNS.
Wear and original patina is consistent with age and use but overall work displays nicely. Please see all photos as they are part of the description. FRANKLIN MINT 3 1/4" tall example is pictured for informational purposes only and is not for sale. Photo of GASPARRO is courtesy of US MINT.
SHIPPING, HANDLING, INSURANCE & TRACKING IS $30.00 for US sales. Includes 15% EBAY/ PAYPAL SELLER'S SHIPPING SURCHARGE FEE.
WE DO NOT SHIP BY UPS as they rip open boxes insured at $100 or more seeking to deny shipments containing antiques. ALL SHIPMENTS NORMALLY MADE THROUGH USPS - BUT WE RESERVE THE RIGHTTO SEND BY FEDERAL EXPRESS GROUND INSURED. OVERSEAS pay $65.00 on this for REGISTERED or MINIMALLY INSURED air post with safe signatured delivery for easy foreign CUSTOMS CLEARANCE. GA STATE residents must pay 8% STATE SALES TAX.
