The Adoration of the Magi -
The biographical chapter of Lewis in Bearden-Henderson, History of African American Artists from 1792, wrote,
In 1883 Bullard reported that Lewis had completed an unusual bas-relief in marble for a church in Baltimore. It depicted the infant
Jesus attended by three adoring "wise men" with definite racial characteristics -- Caucasian, Asian, and African. "Of the three,
the African is given the greater prominence," wrote Bullard. [Woman's Journal, Mar. 10, 1883] This work has not been found.
The work was lost due to a fire. However, researcher Holly Solano discovered a photo of it. In 2011, she wrote,
in part,
When I researched the church, with the fire, the rebuild, the highway demolition and move to a new building, I figured it was the trifecta
of a dead end. But I just felt compelled to go visit (I am a photographer, too, and they have lovely stained glass in their new building) so
I made an appointment. I was wrapping up my photography of their stained glass when Leatrice (the office administrator) came to check on
me and say that I seemed to be interested in old stuff and she had some old photos she thought I might find interesting. I was excited
(as you can probably imagine) when I was initially shown their photo of the original Orchard Street church interior. But I was crestfallen
upon examining the altar in the photo and discovering it was covered with what looked like renaissance style (gold background) paintings,
and not sculpture at all, as all the sources I had described Magi as an "altarpiece." Leatrice said some of the "old-timers" said the church
was very decorated, and some of the sculptures were made of marble and came from famous sculptors in Rome, Italy. I commented that
Edmonia Lewis had her studio in Rome and worked in marble. Then I was shown 1932 article from the Afro American (Baltimore) newspaper
framed and hanging on the wall, describing the church's history. When I started to read it, I discovered that the article identified the sculpture,
the artist, its description, and location - ...a rerodos hanging OVER the altar... When I spun around (literally) in the hallway to re-examine the
photo of the church interior, there it was, in the photo, hanging over the altar. I had been looking at the altar, not OVER it. The evidence was
sitting in plain sight the whole time!
Detail courtesy of and copyright Holly Solano
The Woman's Journal article excerpted the Baltimore Sun, “A Work from a
Colored Sculptor,” Feb. 26, 1883.
Miss Edmonia Lewis, colored, a Baltimore sculptor residing in Rome, has completed a bas-relief in white marble
for the Protestant Episcopal Chapel of St. Mary the Virgin, Orchard street. The work is now in New York and will
be brought to Baltimore and unveiled in the church during Easter week. It represents the adoration of the Magi at
Bethlehem. The Virgin Mary and the child Jesus are the central figures with Joseph to the left and the three Kings
kneeling on the right. In accordance with tradition, one of the Kings is represented as a Caucasian, another as an
Asiatic and the third as an African. As a compliment to the race worshiping in the church for which the piece is
intended, the African King is given the greatest prominence. The relief, which is described as a beautiful work of art,
will be placed in the rear part of the chancel....
(Note the conflict between the article and the photo, with respect to the positions of the figures,
right and left, is likely the result of how the negative was handled during the printing process.)