NGN: Not Genitally Nude, used for sculpture in which male genitals are not displayed — but just barely, usually in ways that call attention to the genitals. Surprisingly common in monumental and memorial statuary of earnest intent, and therefore easily found in the Washington / Baltimore area, which is pretty much blanketed by sculpture of this sort.
Today’s example — brought to my attention by Jeff Shaumeyer — is located in the very heart of memorial-historic D.C. It’s also a seriously crowded work of art, with eight different figures arrayed around it: the Battle of Gettysburg victor General George Meade as the central figure on the front, a winged male figure of War as the rear centerpiece, and six other allegorical figures in between these two. Detail of the Meade side:
(#1) Photo from Wikipedia
What JS posted on Facebook was this view from one side (which I have cleaned up a bit, but without touching the figures):
(#2) This seems to be (if I read the Wikipedia description of the statue correctly) the figure of Military Courage (linking arms with War), with only a bit of drapery standing between him and genital exposure — prime NGN
On the sculpture. From Wikipedia:
The George Gordon Meade Memorial, also known as the Meade Memorial or Major General George Gordon Meade, is a public artwork in Washington, D.C. honoring George Meade, a career military officer from Pennsylvania who is best known for defeating General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg. The monument is sited on the 300 block of Pennsylvania Avenue NW in front of the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse. It was originally located at Union Square, but was removed and placed in storage for fourteen years before being installed at its current location. The statue was sculpted by Charles Grafly, an educator and founder of the National Sculpture Society, and was a gift from the state of Pennsylvania.
… [on the design of the statue:] The cylindrical marble and granite sculpture is 10.6 ft tall and 9 ft wide. Meade is depicted in his military uniform and standing at the front of the sculpture. A male, winged figure representing War is on the rear side of the sculpture and is flanked by two memorial tablets. Six allegorical figures representing qualities the artist believed necessary in a great military leader are on the sides of the sculpture: Chivalry, Energy, Fame, Loyalty, Military Courage, and Progress. The male figure of Loyalty, on the proper right, and female figure of Chivalry, on the proper left, are removing Meade’s military cloak, representing the “cloak of battle” that Meade leaves behind. The figure representing Loyalty holds a wreath and garlands behind Meade representing his accomplishments. The female figure representing Fame is behind Loyalty and is supported by the male figure of Energy. Behind Chivalry is the male figure of Progress and male figure of Military Courage. The latter is locking arms with War. A gold finial of the state seal of Pennsylvania is at the top of the memorial. The Milford pink granite base is 7.4 ft tall with a diameter of 20.10 ft.
Earlier on this blog. NGN from Washington / Baltimore, in my 4/1/23 posting “Two bronze Orpheuses”:
(#3)
From Allen Browne’s Landmarks site about this Orpheus on 11/3/12:
This 24-foot-tall statue of Orpheus stands near the entrance to Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine [in Baltimore MD] as a monument to Francis Scott Key.
… While the leaves of Ficus carica are traditionally used to add modesty to nude statues, I’m unaware of another statue in which the leafy codpiece plays so prominent a part.
The hell with his lyre — look at that codpiece!
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