08 June 2014

Abraham Lincoln's swollen right hand

Chicago artist Leonard Volk produced... the casts of Lincoln’s hands on May 20, two days after the Republican Party nominated him for the presidency. Lincoln’s right hand was still swollen from shaking hands with supporters. To steady his hand in the mold, Lincoln went out to the woodshed and cut off a piece of broom handle. Volk later placed the piece of handle in the cast displayed here.
Further information at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

2 comments:

  1. maybe it's just the camera angle, but the hand on the right side of the image looks bigger that the one holding the stick.

    I-)

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    Replies
    1. But note the edema in the fingers of the right hand.

      Delete