In 1809, Miss Nancy Vanuxem, pretty debutante daughter of Philadelphia City Councilman James Vanuxem, swathed herself in cheesecloth draperies and stepped up on a model stand holding a stuffed bittern by the right leg. It was a unique occasion in the history of U. S. art. William Rush, the first native wood carver of sufficient ability and reputation to be known as a sculptor, was at work on the first public fountain figure ever erected in the U. S., using, so far as records show, the first living female model. Years later the scene was painted by famed Thomas Eakins...
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