General Gordon
Artist
Thomas Stuart Burnett
(Edinburgh, Scotland, 1853 - 1888)
Subject
General Charles George Gordon
(Woolwich, London, England, 1833 - 1885)
Datec.1888
Object NameSculpture
MediumSculpture, bronze; plinth, pink granite
ClassificationsSculptures
AcquisitionOwned by Aberdeen City Council under the curatorial care of Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums.
CopyrightOut of copyright
Object numberABDCC001069
Keywords
Burnett depicted Gordon with a standing full-length figure. He is seen wearing his regimental uniform of the Royal Engineers: a tunic with large floppy braided frogging, over which is worn a great coat with a half-length cape. He wears knee length riding boots and spurs. In his right hand he leans on a bamboo walking cane and in his left he holds a pair of binoculars. He is bare headed. The figure is cast in bronze and the plinth is made of pink granite, surrounded by a set of pink flagstones and with a rounded granite bollard at each corner of the flagstone base.
Gordon's military success was based on his role in the Crimean War (1853-65) and cemented during his leadership as a captain in China in the early 1860s. His reputation was that of a popular exemplar of the then cult of the Christian military hero. General Gordon was killed at Khartoum on 26th January 1885, at the end of one of the most famous sieges in history. His career is a controversial one although he was feted in the 1966 film 'Khartoum', in which he was depicted by Charlton Heston.
The inscription on the plinth reads:
Charles George Gordon RE CB
Major-General
Born 28 January 1833
Fell in his Country's service at
Kartoum January 1885
Dedicated to his Memory
By
Members of the Gordon Clan
The lower section of the plinth reads:
'I have done my best for the honour of our country'
Kartoum 14 Dec., 1884
This piece was one of the last commissioned works of Thomas Stuart Burnett which he executed in the year of his death, 1888.
Listing Status: Grade B
Re-framing the Collection
Whilst serving in Sudan General Gordon was involved in attempts to suppress the local slave trade.
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