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Eternal Silence

Eternal Silence, also known as the Monument to Dexter Graves or the Statue of Death, is a monument in Chicago’s Graceland Cemetery. Created by American sculptor Lorado Taft in 1909, it features a bronze sculpture placed on black granite with a backdrop. The monument commemorates Dexter Graves, who led thirteen families from Ohio to settle in Chicago in 1831. Funds for the work came from the will of Graves’s son Henry, who died in 1907. The sculpture has been cited as one of Taft’s most important works, and its image has influenced other artists. A popular legend says that looking into the hooded figure’s eyes reveals a vision of one’s own death.

Eternal Silence sculpture, a hooded bronze figure standing before a dark stone slab.
Eternal Silence, the bronze grave monument in Graceland Cemetery, shown as a hooded figure against a black granite backdrop.
January 2000 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
Eternal Silence sculpture with a hooded, green-patinated figure standing before a tall stone monument.
Eternal Silence stands before a tall stone monument in a cemetery setting.
August 2011 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Eternal Silence statue standing on a dark base among gravestones in Graceland Cemetery
The Eternal Silence monument stands among gravestones and bare trees in Graceland Cemetery.
March 2009 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
The Eternal Silence sculpture, a tall patinated bronze robed figure on a dark monument in a grassy setting with visitors nearby.
Eternal Silence stands on a dark monument in an outdoor park setting as visitors gather nearby.
May 2018 © · CC BY 2.0
Eternal Silence shows a draped hooded figure with its face in shadow and weathered fabric folds.
Eternal Silence by Lorado Taft, showing the hooded, draped figure in close-up.
August 2011 © · CC BY-SA 3.0

Identification

TitleEternal Silence
Original-language titleSilencio eterno
TypeMonument
Alternative namesDexter Graves Monument; Statue of Death

Historical context

Date created1909
Dexter Graves death date29 April 1845
Dexter Graves birthcirca 1793
Dexter Graves historical noteLed a group of 13 settler families from Ohio to Chicago in 1831
Commemoration timingGraves died 75 years before the sculpture was created and 16 years before Graceland Cemetery was founded

Creator

ArtistLorado Taft
Artist nationalityAmerican
CasterJules Bercham

Location and ownership

LocationGraceland Cemetery, Chicago
Commemorated personDexter Graves

Discovery and provenance

Additional bequest$40,000 for a monument to Henry Graves's favorite racehorse, Ike Cook
Unrealized related monumentA monument to Ike Cook was planned for Washington Park beside a drinking fountain for horses, but it was never realized despite a model being made
Replacement workIn 1920, Fountain of Time by Lorado Taft was built in its place
Henry Graves death year1907
Burial relocationHis body was presumably moved from the old City Cemetery, now the site of Lincoln Park
FundingFunded by the will of Henry Graves; $250,000 was provided for the monument

Physical characteristics

Height3 meters
FigureA hooded and draped figure

Materials

Sculpture materialBronze
Base materialBlack granite
CompositionThe bronze figure stands on black granite with a black granite backdrop

Technique

Foundry inscriptionAm. Art Bronze Foundry J. Bercham -Chicago-
SignatureTaft engraved his signature on the north side of the pedestal

Appearance

Surface conditionHeavily oxidized with a green patina
StyleArt Nouveau

Iconography and meaning

IconographyBased on traditional depictions of the Grim Reaper
Related artistic parallelsSimilar to the funeral procession on the Tomb of Philip the Bold in Dijon and Augustus Saint-Gaudens's Adams Memorial in Washington, D.C.
InfluenceShaped by Taft's own ideas about death and eternal rest

History and restoration

Former maintenanceThe cemetery previously polished the statue to restore its original bronze shine
Current maintenanceThe green patina is now left on the sculpture
Public reactionThe polishing drew complaints and requests to keep the green sheen

Significance

Assessment in literatureListed by Ada Bartlett Taft in Lorado Taft; Sculptor and Citizen (1946) as one of the artist's most important works
ReputationConsidered Graceland Cemetery's most unforgettable monument
Later artistic influenceImages of the sculpture have been used in other works of art, including by Claes Oldenburg
FolkloreA local legend says that looking into the statue's eyes causes a vision of one's own death