Portrait Bust of Guglielmo Marconi
Portrait Bust of Guglielmo Marconi
Portrait Bust of Guglielmo Marconi

Portrait Bust of Guglielmo Marconi

Object number2019.12.1 a,b
Sculptor (1888 - 1968)
Sculptor
Date1951
OriginNY
OriginItaly
MediumBronze; Marble
Credit LineGift of Entercom Pittsburgh
DescriptionBronze bust on a marble pedastal. Figure is depicted in three-quarter view facing proper left, but head is nearly in profile. Figure's torso consists of cloud-like swaths with lightning-bolt-like protrusion from proper left upper back with spherical shape below. Bottom of torso is a rounded rectangle and has figure's last name in raised text across front bottom. Artist's signature and date carved at back bottom proper right area. Maker's mark imprinted on back of bust along bottom. Octagonal pedastal is made of dark green marble with white veinsDimensionsHeight x Width x Depth (a-b together): 84 × 29 × 18.75 in. (213.4 × 73.7 × 47.6 cm)
Height x Width x Depth (a): 27.875 × 29 × 15 in. (70.8 × 73.7 × 38.1 cm)
Height x Width x Depth (b): 56.125 × 18.5 × 18.75 in. (142.6 × 47 × 47.6 cm)
Weight (a-b together [not confirmed]): 2000 lb. (907.2 kg)
Weight (b): 1800 lb. (816.5 kg)
SignedBust has text carved at back bottom proper right area "F. VITTOR / 1951".
Inscriptions(a)
Bottom front of bust has raised text "MARCONI".

(b)
Rectangular bronze plaque mounted on front at top center has raised text "DEDICATED IN HONOR / OF / GUGLIELMO MARCONI / INVENTOR OF WIRE- / LESS TELEGRAPHY, / AND PRESENTED TO / KDKA THE PIONEER / RADIO STATION OF / THE WORLD / BY AMERICANS OF / ITALIAN ANCESTRY / IN WESTER PENN- / SYLVANIA. JAN 22, 1952".
MarksText imprinted on back of bust along bottom "ROMAN BRONZE WORKS, INC. NY."
Historical NotesItalian sculptor Frank Vittor was commissioned to create this bronze bust of Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi for KDKA Radio in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first trans-Atlantic wireless telegraph. The bust sits atop a marble pedestal, which was sourced by local marble contractor Nick Battista from the Italian Alps. On the pedestal is a plaque noting that Italian Americans from Western Pennsylvania gifted the bust to KDKA, “the pioneer radio station of the world.” Fiorentino DiGirolamo, an active member of the Sons of Italy, was largely responsible for the fundraising to complete the sculpture’s creation. Marconi’s widow, Marchesa Maria Cristina Marconi, and her daughter, Elettra, attended the sculpture’s unveiling event at the KDKA offices on January 21, 1952. In 1956, KDKA Radio moved from the Grant Building into the Gateway Center; The Pittsburgh Press noted the difficulty of moving the one-ton sculpture.
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