Henry Berger, Bust of Humboldt, 1860, painted plaster, 27 x 16 x 12 1/2 in., The National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.
About this Artwork
When Humboldt died in 1859, sculptor Henry Berger modeled a commemorative bust of Humboldt; this cast came to the Smithsonian, where it was installed in the Castle. It currently resides in the Botany Department library, a fitting place for the man whose vision of the “unity of nature” was based on his global study of plants and their environments.