Explore the Design of this artwork, Statue of Stephen F. Austin.
Stephen F. Austin is a full-length statue in marble. It shows Austin standing on slightly uneven ground with his left foot forward, looking up and ahead into the distance. The lowered hands hold a partially unrolled scroll, meant to represent a map, while a Kentucky long rifle leans against the left hip and leg. Austin is portrayed as a young explorer dressed in fringed buckskins. The front face of the self base (the marble platform on which the figure stands) is inscribed "STEPHEN F. AUSTIN".
Ney used authentic period objects for reference in developing the details of the sculpture, including the long rifle and scroll map. When critics complained that the Houston statue was 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) tall while the Austin statue was only 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm), she replied that these had been the actual heights of the men, and that anyone objecting should "take the issue up not with her but with God.": 139
scroll statue Stephen F. Austin Kentucky long rifle marble Austin buckskins