The Milton Shield Copy at the WAH

Milton Shield
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My friend Terrance Lindall - gentleman, scholar, and possibly acrobat - intends to display a bonded-marble copy (shown above) of the famous Milton Shield this coming Sunday at the WAH Center, and he cites some words from 1stdibs about the original Milton Shield:

Designed by Léonard Morel-Ladeuil (French, 1820 - 1888) and made by Elkington and Company (Birmingham, UK), the Milton Shield won the prestigious Medal of Honor at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1867 and was considered by many contemporaries to be the best work at the event, which featured more than 15,000 exhibitors and was seen by more than six million people.

The shield depicts the fourth and fifth books of John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost (1667) and was made for the 200th anniversary of the work. The virtuosic repoussé, low-relief, multi-figural sculptures of Adam and Even in the central panel, surrounded by several panels of the war between Lucifer and the hosts of heaven are reminiscent of Renaissance armor made for Emperor Charles V . . . . The shield was made using a then-revolutionary electroplating method that incorporated silver and gold over copper. Similar versions can be found in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum (London) and Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York).

So far as I can determine, the original shield seems to be the one displayed in the Victoria and Albert Museum, for that one dates to 1866. The most important date in the shield's history, however, was the following year, when it was displayed at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1867 to honor the 200th anniversary of Paradise Lost, first published in 1667. Thousands of copies have been made in both metal and stone, and Lindall cites the WAH Center's observations about the copy depicted above:

This is a 32" x 25" bonded marble copy of the Milton Shield. Terrance Lindall, Milton illustrator, actually likes this BETTER than the original because it is like Wedgwood, the figures are floating like clouds in a blue heavenly sky. The figures are almost 3-D because they are sculpted BEHIND some of the figures, not just a mold impression. Magnificent detail!

This work of art is breathtakingly detailed, and you can see it up close because the Yuko Nii Foundation copy of the Milton Shield will be on display this Sunday, February 8th, 12-3 p.m. in the WAH Coffee House.

Or you can click on the image above and see the detail right now!