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Cuban Friendship Urn

The Cuban Friendship Urn, also known as the Cuban-American Friendship Urn or USS Maine Memorial, is a marble statue in Washington, D.C., listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was originally in Cuba to honor the American deaths aboard the USS Maine before the Spanish-American War in 1898. After a hurricane toppled its marble column in 1926, the urn was sent from Cuba to the United States in 1928 and delivered to President Calvin Coolidge by Cuban President Gerardo Machado. Its later history included several reported moves and periods out of public view before it was listed on the National Register in 2007.

The Cuban Friendship Urn on a tiered stone pedestal with a bronze plaque, standing in a grassy park near a path and trees.
The Cuban Friendship Urn rests on a stepped pedestal in a grassy area of East Potomac Park.
July 2008 © · CC BY 2.0
The Cuban Friendship Urn on a tiered pedestal with carved relief details and a bronze plaque.
The Cuban Friendship Urn stands on a stepped pedestal outdoors in Washington, D.C.
March 2016 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
The Cuban American Friendship Urn, a stone urn monument on a stepped pedestal in a grassy park.
The Cuban American Friendship Urn stands on a stepped pedestal in a grassy outdoor setting.
© NPS Photo · Public domain
The Cuban Friendship Urn mounted on a pedestal outdoors with a person standing nearby.
The Cuban Friendship Urn stands on a stone pedestal in a park setting with a visitor nearby.
July 2013 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Bronze plaque on the Cuban American Friendship Urn with raised Spanish text and decorative corner details.
A bronze plaque on the Cuban American Friendship Urn in Washington, D.C., with Spanish inscriptions about the monument\'s stone.
© NPS Photo · Public domain

Identification

TitleCuban Friendship Urn
Typeurn; memorial sculpture
Original Spanish nameLa Urna de la Amistad Cubana
Alternative namesUrna de la Amistad Cubano-Americana; USS Maine Memorial; Cuban–American Friendship Urn

Creator

Attribution in inscriptionGerardo Machado

Historical context

Historical contextAssociated with the period before the Spanish-American War in 1898
Associated eventUSS Maine sinking and memorialization of the dead aboard the USS Maine
CommemoratesU.S. sailors and Marines who died aboard the USS Maine when it sank in Havana harbor in 1898
Also commemoratesThe friendship and ties between Cuba and the United States
PurposeTo honor the American dead aboard the USS Maine

Discovery and provenance

Original locationCuba
Former locationHavana, Cuba, on a marble column
Material originA fragment of the marble column of the Monument to the Victims of the Maine in Havana
Damage eventA hurricane in October 1926 knocked the marble column over
Transferred to the United States1928, sent by Cuban President Gerardo Machado and delivered to U.S. President Calvin Coolidge

Location and ownership

Possible disappearance causeIt may have been stolen during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis or removed for a construction project
Listed onNational Register of Historic Places
Current settingOutdoor monument in a park area
Reported storage statusSaid to be in storage in 1963
Later reported relocationPlaced in East Potomac Park in 1998 after repairs
Later reported recoveryA 1996 report said it had been found abandoned in Rock Creek Park; a 2009 National Park Service publication said it was discovered in a National Park Service warehouse in 1992
Possible former U.S. locationOutside the Embassy of Cuba on 16th Street NW, Washington, D.C.
Current locationOhio Drive, Southwest, Washington, D.C., in West Potomac Park, near the north end of the 14th Street Bridge

History and restoration

Placement historyAccording to the National Park Service, it was placed in a rose garden of West Potomac Park in 1928, near the future site of the Jefferson Memorial
Moved in the 1940sMoved to the 14th Street Bridge area for construction of the bridge
Repair cost$11,000

Physical characteristics

MaterialMarble
Object typeUrn / monument

Appearance

Decorative motifsAn eagle with outstretched wings and human figures
StyleNeoclassical

Inscription

Inscription languageSpanish
Inscription textLa memoria del Maine perdurará por siempre a través de los siglos como lo serán los lazos de amistad entre la patria de Cuba y la patria de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica
Base inscription themeThe urn was sculpted from a fragment of the marble column of the Monument to the Victims of the Maine

Recognition

Cultural recognitionCalled one of the '10 monuments you've probably never heard of' in the Washington, D.C., area