Cyrus Edwin Dallin

Cyrus Edwin Dallin (1861, 1944) was an American sculptor best known for his monumental equestrian statues depicting Native American subjects, most notably the four-part epic cycle including 'Appeal to the Great Spirit,' which stands at the entrance of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Born in Springville, Utah, he studied in Boston and Paris, where he absorbed the academic realist tradition and applied it to distinctly American themes. His work is celebrated for its dignified and sympathetic portrayal of Indigenous peoples at a time when such representation was rare in mainstream American art.