Focus on Sparty and discuss the Statues.
When John Hannah became president of Michigan State College in 1941, he commissioned assistant professor of art Leonard D. Jungwirth to design a statue of an athletic Spartan warrior. Jungwirth sculpted a statue known simply as The Spartan, which soon gained the nickname of "Sparty". Though Jungwirth originally designed The Spartan as a bronze statue, it had to be cast in terra cotta due to World War II rationing of bronze. The terra cotta statue stood on the banks of the Red Cedar River, until 2005, when the university replaced it with a bronze replica. The original Spartan was moved into the stadium, where it remains on display to this day.
terra cotta rationing World War II Spartan bronze assistant professor Sparta Leonard D. Jungwirth Red Cedar River John Hannah