Bear

Object NameSculpture

Artist / Maker Christian Petersen (Danish - American, 1885 - 1961)

Date1920-1922

MediumBronze

Dimensions3 × 5 1/2 × 2 1/2 in. (7.6 × 14 × 6.4 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Helen Nerney Shaw to Special Collections, Iowa State University Library. Transferred to University Museums. In the Christian Petersen Art Collection, Christian Petersen Art Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object numberUM99.56

Status

Not on view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: In the long history of America’s exploration of its identity and its search for artistic inspiration in the nation’s natural wonders, Yellowstone National Park has played a particularly influential role. One significant contribution to this narrative came in the 1920s when Christian Petersen, while working for the Robbins Company, created a bronze sculpture of a bear likely intended for Yellowstone.6 This sculpture portrays a bear standing majestically at the edge of a cliff and is believed to be one of the first objects bearing Petersen’s distinctive “chop mark” style. This sculpture follows a series of copyrighted designs from 1912, which featured bears as symbols of both Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks. These designs, created by George Nerney and die-cut by Petersen, were used to produce souvenir spoons and other silverware for the Robbins Company in Attleboro, Massachusetts. The sculpture is particularly reminiscent of the spoon design titled Bear on Geyser – Yellowstone Park Such imagery reflects the significance of bears in Yellowstone and became a park symbol after Yellowstone’s designation as a national park in 1872. In 1942, Iowa State College honored Petersen with a dinner and a retrospective exhibition of fifty of his works of art at the Memorial Union. George E. Nerney, longtime friend and sometimes collaborator of Petersen, addressed attendees and brought with him this small bronze bear for the exhibition.

SignedSigned in base in square: CP

Locations