“Looking East in the Grand Court,” taken from part one of From Peristyle to Plaisance, published by The Chicago Tribune in 1893. The illustration is based on a watercolor by Charles S. Graham (1852-1911), an American artist who served as the official artist of the World’s Columbian Exposition. He was one of the best known artists in his day, having produced hundreds of illustrations for Harper’s Weekly and other publications.
At center stands the statue of The Republic by American sculptor Daniel Chester French (1850-1931), which dominated the east end of the Court of Honor. The artwork was 65 feet in height and was set upon a 35-foot pedestal. The statue was made of staff (a type of reinforced plaster) over a wood and iron framework, and was completely covered in gold leaf. Eight electric lights in the crown were lit in the evening. The original was destroyed in an August 1896 fire, but a 24-foot copy of the statue, made of gilt bronze, was installed in Jackson Park in 1918 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Fair, and still stands.
Shown at left is Draught Horse (Industry), also made of staff. It shows a farmer with his shovel (designed by French) standing beside his horse, designed by American sculptor Edward Clark Potter (1857-1923), best known for his two marble lions in front of the main branch of the New York Public Library.