Detail of:  The Sphinxes

   The pair of crouched Egyptian mythical figures by sculptor Arthur Putnam guards a walkway seemingly to nowhere---but this was once the pathway to the Egyptian style Fine Arts Building for the 1894 Midwinter Fair.  These figures replace the original ones,  which disappeared sometime after the 1906 earthquake. Stories abound about the material and fate of the originals. Some say they were granite, and others say they were bronze and melted down. Another memory is that one was stolen and the other destroyed. In any event, the current concrete pieces, similar in concept to the original ones, were created in 1903 and installed in 1928.
   Putnam is know for his animal sculptures; he also sculpted (with Leo Lentelli) Market Street’s decorative streetlight bases.  
Respectfully taken from SAN FRANCISCO’S GOLDEN GATE PARK   by Christopher Pollock 2001    West Winds Press

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