Art of Sagamore Hill

Theodore Roosevelt's taxidermist James Clark cast this bronze in 1912. It was a gift to Theodore Roosevelt from his younger sister Corinne. Family lore is that Edith Roosevelt did not care for the bronze and hung her gardening hat on the horn. She also encouraged the Roosevelt children to post phone messages on the tick birds on the back of the rhinoceros.

"The Still Hunt" was sculpted by Edward Kemeys in 1885. This bronze bears a close resemblance to a large scale sculpture of a stalking panther in New York's Central Park created by Kemeys in 1883. Theodore Roosevelt had several works in his collection made by Kemeys.

This bronze of a panther sculpted by A. Phimster Proctor, was given to Theodore Roosevelt by his "Tennis Cabinet" on March 1, 1909 at a farewell luncheon at the end of his second term. The name and title of each cabinet member is engraved on the base of the sculpture.

This bronze of a standing moose was sculpted by Carl Rungius in 1905. Rungius was a German-born artist who was interested in creating art based on his experiences exploring the American West in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Rungius was both a painter and a sculptor. Theodore Roosevelt collected several pieces of art by Rungius including sculpture, sketches, and paintings.

These candelabrum depicting birds' nests, mice and snails are believed to have been originally purchased for Theodore Roosevelt parent's home on West 57th Street in Manhattan.

"Sheridan's Ride" by James Kelly, depicts P.H. Sheridan, a Civil War Colonel in the Union Army on horseback. Theodore Roosevelt purchased this bronze from Tiffany's in 1879, while he was a student at Harvard.

"Rough Rider" by Frederick MacMonnies depicts Theodore Roosevelt on horseback during the Spanish American War.

"Kit Carson" by Frederick MacMonnies. Theodore Roosevelt bought this statue at Tiffany's in March 1915 as an "un-birthday present to himself," according to his wife Edith Roosevelt.

"The Bronco Buster" by Frederic Remington was presented to Theodore Roosevelt when the unit was disbanded on September 15, 1898 following the Spanish American War. Remington was a good friend of TR's and illustrated several of Roosevelt's books on ranching in the Dakotas.

"The Puritan" was sculpted by Augustus Saint-Gaudens and presented to Governor Theodore Roosevelt by his military staff on December 31, 1900.

This bronze bust of Theodore Roosevelt was sculpted by Gutzon Borglum. It was cast from the preliminary model for the head of TR carved on Mount Rushmore, South Dakota.

Bronze death mask of Theodore Roosevelt created from the cast taken by James Earle Fraser at Sagamore Hill on January 6, 1919, after Roosevelt's death. Fraser had previously sculpted Roosevelt's bust for the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.

First Lady Edith Roosevelt received this set of bisque figurines as a French diplomatic gift in May 1902. The 'Scarf Dance' figurines were designed by French sculptor Agathon Léonard and produced by the National Porcelain Factory of Sévres. Intended for use as a table centerpiece, they combine the finest French craftsmanship in a very traditional medium with the avant-garde subject of modern dance. The three figurines pictured here are Torch, Tambourine, and Scarf.

Statue of the Japanese God of Benevolence and Hunting presented to Theodore Roosevelt by U.S. Naval Admiral William M. Folger.

Plaster model of a bison head sculpted by A. Phimister Proctor and given to Theodore Roosevelt. In 1909, Theodore Roosevelt replaced the stone carved lions on the mantle of the State Dining Room at the White House with carvings of the American bison. TR viewed the lion as a symbol of European monarchy and thought that a uniquely American animal, such as the bison, should be used instead.

Watercolor of a bison bull head shot by Theodore Roosevelt by J. Carter Beard. This image was used in Roosevelt's 1885 book "Hunting Trips of a Ranchman."

Terra cotta relief of a "sable" by Edward Kemeys.

"Grand Canyon" by Lucien Powell. Powell was a Virginia-born landscape painter who visited the Grand Canyon in 1901, accompanying a group that was doing a geological survey of the canyon. Theodore Roosevelt who had visited the Grand Canyon in 1903, preserved the canyon as a national monument in 1908.

Oil painting of a charging moose by Carl Rungius. The philanthropist August Heckscher gave this painting of a charging moose to Theodore Roosevelt for his 54th birthday in 1912. At the time, Theodore Roosevelt was running for President as part of the Progressive Party which was nicknamed "The Bull Moose Progressive Party" after TR told a reporter he "felt fit as a bull moose."

"Smokey City" by Fritz Thaulow is an interpretation of industrial Pittsburgh. Thaulow highlights the importance of the train and the mill, as well as the working class neighborhoods that many of the factory employees came from. This painting was a gift to President Roosevelt from Henry Clay Frick in 1902. TR described Thaulow as a "Scandanavian artist who could see the fierce picturesqueness of workaday Pittsburg."

"Procession of Guests Passing Through the Corridor, 1908" by W. B. Closson depicts guests in formal attire and military uniforms passing through a columned corridor in the White House. A military band plays in the background.

"Receiving Guests in the Blue Room" by W. B. Closson depicts Theodore Roosevelt greeting guests in the Blue Room of the White House.

This untitled painting by Joseph Miller depicts a possibly Dutch woman and child at prayer before a meal.

"Dry Dock Dewey Flotilla in the China Sea" by W.J. Aylward depicts the USS Dewey, which was a floating dry dock that was designed to help repair U.S. Naval ships abroad and traveled to the Philippines from 1905-1906.

Watercolor of the exterior of the Theodore Roosevelt home by Miss Gertrude Young, Alice Roosevelt's governess, completed in June 1900. On the reverse side is a pencil sketch of the windmill at Sagamore Hill by Miss Young.

This mosaic designed by Vatican artists depicts Pope Leo XIII in the papal gardens. The mosaic was sent to Theodore and Edith Roosevelt in 1902 by Pope Leo XIII with the Pope's "expression of his high esteem" for the President and his wife. At the time of the exchange, William Howard Taft, who was the Governor General of the Philippines, was in Rome to negotiate the purchase of church lands in the Philippines by the United States. In return, TR gave the Pope a set of books that he wrote.

"Seats of the Mighty" by P. Marcius Simons depicts a large castle as a seat of power, towering over a village, forest, and water. This painting was given to Theodore Roosevelt as a surprise gift from his friend Arthur Hamilton Lee of England in 1908.

"Where Light and Shadow Meet" by P. Marcius Simons depicts a river scene with a cathedral or castle-like structure in the background and a bridge with a crucifix. The darkness of the right side of the painting meets with the lightness of the left side of the painting at the base of the crucifix. TR admired the artist's use of light in his paintings. In a letter to the artist dated March 19, 1904, Theodore Roosevelt wrote "I do not greatly care for the reproduction of landscapes which in effect I see whenever I ride and walk. I wish ‘the light that never was on land or sea’, in the pictures that I am to live with – and this light your paintings have."

"Victory" painted by P. Marcius Simons in 1904 was dedicated to Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt. P. Marcius Simons described this painting as "the olive branch tendered to the world but enforced by the sword of justice and might beneath." Edith Roosevelt described the painting in a letter to her sister Emily Carow: "The color is quite beautiful and the picture will always be interesting historically." TR described Simons as "A great imaginative artist, a wonderful colorist, and a man with a vision more wonderful still."

"Porcelain Towers" by P. Marcius Simons depicts colorful sailboats, three pagoda-like towers and small human figures along the coast at sunset. In Theodore Roosevelt's autobiography, Roosevelt described P. Marcius Simons as "a great imaginative artist, a wonderful colorist, and a man with a vision more wonderful still."

Portrait of Theodore Roosevelt Sr. painted by Daniel Huntington in 1884. This painting is one of several copies produced for TR Sr.'s children. A prominent philanthropist in 19th century New York City, TR Sr. helped found the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Children's Aid Society, among other organizations.

Portrait of Theodore Roosevelt in his Rough Rider uniform painted by Fedor Encke in 1902. Mrs. Bellamy Storer encouraged TR to sit for this portrait after his return from the Spanish American War. In a letter to Mrs. Storer in December in 1902, Roosevelt said "Just at this time I could have received no other present which would have appealed to me so much as the picture by Encke, and I thank you for it with all my heart. I took an immense fancy to the picture. I cannot say that I think it looks particularly like me, but most emphatically it does look the way I should like to have my children and possible grandchildren think that I looked! I have always wanted to have a picture taken in uniform, although I have felt shamefaced about sitting for such a picture in view of my very brief military career. So I do wish you to feel that you have given me the very thing of all others I wanted" (Theodore Roosevelt Papers, Library of Congress).

This portrait of Edith Roosevelt was painted by Philip A. de Laszlo in Washington D.C. in 1908. De Laszlo had been introduced to Theodore and Edith Roosevelt by TR's British friend Arthur Hamilton Lee. Theodore Roosevelt hung this portrait of Edith in the library at Sagamore Hill, opposite his desk.

Oil painting of Theodore Roosevelt copied by Frederick Cullen after Philip de Laszlo. Theodore Roosevelt wears a riding cape and holds gloves and a riding crop. This portrait was given to Edith Roosevelt by Lord Arthur Hamilton Lee in 1922. The original full length portrait of TR done by de Laszlo in 1908 is in the board room at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

Sketch by John Singer Sargent of Kermit Roosevelt wearing his World War One uniform.

Oil painting by Philip A. DeLaszlo of Kermit Roosevelt wearing his World War One uniform.

Oil painting by Elizabeth Shoumatoff of Ethel Roosevelt Derby wearing her World War II Red Cross uniform.

Etching of Theodore Roosevelt by Bernhardt Wall. Wall was a fellow Spanish-American War veteran and a leading etcher and illustrator.