Daphne

Harriet Goodhue Hosmer

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In Greek mythology, Apollo’s first love was Daphne, a nymph who shunned marriage and vowed perpetual virginity. Fleeing the god, Daphne prayed for help and was transformed into a laurel tree just as he was about to overtake her. Rather than depicting the dramatic moment of escape, Hosmer modeled a serene image and symbolized Daphne’s metamorphosis by terminating the bust in laurel branches. The work is true to Hosmer’s Neoclassical training in Rome, where she was one of a number of active American women sculptors.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art