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The Savage

Founder Cast by Roman Bronze Works
1908, cast ca. 1916
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 774
Remington created "The Savage," copyrighted in 1908, as a pendant to his only other bust, "The Sergeant" (39.65.52a, b) of four years earlier. Both, miniaturized in scale, represent early- twentieth-century stereotypes rather than specific individuals. With exaggerated phenotypically Native features, a defiant expression, and bared teeth, "The Savage" represents a common conception of the Indigenous American in Remington’s art. While some of his Western types remain iconic, others lay bare problematic and discomforting cultural and racial biases, as further evidenced by his choice of title.



Only one cast of "The Savage," which Remington wrote of seeing in the window of Tiffany & Company in 1908, appears to have been produced during his lifetime. The Metropolitan's example, cast number 10, was authorized by Remington's widow, Eva, and was recorded in the Roman Bronze Works ledger in May 1916.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Savage
  • Artist: Frederic Remington (American, Canton, New York 1861–1909 Ridgefield, Connecticut)
  • Founder: Cast by Roman Bronze Works
  • Date: 1908, cast ca. 1916
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Bronze
  • Dimensions: 10 7/8 x 6 1/4 x 6 in. (27.6 x 15.9 x 15.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Jacob Ruppert, 1939
  • Object Number: 39.65.51a, b
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

More Artwork

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The Smoke Signal, Frederic Remington American, Color lithograph
The Smoke Signal
Frederic Remington
1923–60
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXXXI, No. 485, Frederic Remington American, Illustrations: wood engravings
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXXXI, No. 485
Multiple artists/makers
October 1890
The Century, New Year's Number, January, Frederic Remington American, Lithograph
The Century, New Year's Number, January
Frederic Remington
1902
The Rattlesnake, Frederic Remington American, Bronze, American
The Rattlesnake
Frederic Remington
Roman Bronze Works
1905, revised 1908; this cast, before 1939
A Southern Rider, from "Some American Riders," for "Harper's New Monthly Magazine," August 1891, Frederic Remington American, Woodblock
A Southern Rider, from "Some American Riders," for "Harper's New Monthly Magazine," August 1891
Frederic Remington
Theodore Ayrault Dodge
1891

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