Frederick Keep Monument

Frederick Keep Monument is a public artwork by American artist James Earle Fraser, located at Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, D.C., United States. "Frederick Keep Monument" was originally surveyed as part of the Smithsonian's Save Outdoor Sculpture! survey in 1993. This sculpture rests at the site of the grave of Frederick and Florence Keep and their child.[1]

Frederick Keep Monument
Artist	James Earle Fraser
Year	1920
Type	Bronze
Dimensions	260 cm × 162 cm × 55 cm (102 in × 63.6 in × 21.6 in)
Location	Washington, D.C., United States
	38°56′48.63″N 77°0′42.32″W
Owner	Rock Creek Cemetery

Description

The main portion of this sculpture features a bronze female and male couple standing on a low rectangular base. The female raises both of her arms with her proper right and left hands resting on their respective shoulders. The male figure stands closely on her proper left side with his proper right arm behind her. Both of the figures are bare chested and wear loosely draped Roman-style drapery that is rolled at the waist, as well as Roman sandals. The female figure has a cape on over the back of her head and she looks downward. The male figure gazes out to the distance. They stand in front of a narrow granite wall.

The lower right side of the sculpture is signed: J. E. FRASER The lower left side of the sculpture is marked: Kunst-Foundry N.Y.

The back of the granite base is inscribed:

FREDERIC A. KEEP

DIED JUNE 2, 1911

AGE 53 YEARS

FLORENCE SHEFFIELD BOARDMAN KEEP

DIED JAN 26, 1954

AGE 89 YEARS

INFANT OF F AND F. KEEP

DIED OCT. 6, 1902[1]

• 
  Front
• 
  Front
• 
  Detail
• 
  Detail

Artist

Acquisition

The sculpture was installed just before or on October 3, 1920.[1]

Information

Frederick Keep was a prominent Washington business man. His wife, Florence, was the sister of Mabel Thorp Boardman, one of the founders of the American Red Cross, and American socialite Josephine Porter Boardman.[1] Her father, William J. Boardman, a lawyer and philanthropist who died August 2, 1915, is also buried in Rock Creek Cemetery.[2] She traveled frequently (often with her sister Josephine) to places such as Panama and New Orleans.[3][4] Florence was quite the socialite running in circles with the likes of Secretary of State John Hay, Agnes Meyer, Katharine Graham, Ruth Draper, and President & Mrs. Taft.[5][6][7][8] A number of Florence Keep's personal belongings were donated to the National Museum of American History by her sister Josephine, including a late 1920s evening dress that was exhibited in the Hall of American Costume from 1964-1973.[9]

Condition

This sculpture was surveyed in 1993 for its condition and it was described as needing treatment urgently.[1]

References

1. Save Outdoor Sculptures! (1993). "Frederick Keep Monument (sculpture)". SOS!. Smithsonian. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
2. "William J. Boardman Dead" (PDF). New York Times. 3 August 1915. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
3. "Society in Washington" (PDF). New York Times. 11 March 1902. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
4. "Society". Page 5. The Washington Herald. 1912. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
5. "Society in Washington" (PDF). New York Times. 17 April 1904. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
6. Graham, Katharine. Katharine Graham's Washington. Random House, 2009.
7. Draper, Ruth. The letters of Ruth Draper: self-portrait of an actress, 1920-1956. SIU Press, 1999, p 38.
8. "Society in Washington". Page 6. New York Tribune. 1909. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
9. "Dress, 1-Piece". Costume Collection - Women's Dresses. Smithsonian. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2010.

Sources

• James M. Goode, The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, ISBN 0-87474-138-6, p. 343