Denver police have found the American Indian bow that was taken late last month from a historic statue outside the state Capitol.
The bow, swiped from the bronze sculpture “The Closing Era,” which dates to at least 1893, was discovered tossed over the District 2 police station fence Wednesday afternoon, said police spokeswoman Christine Downs.
The piece is in the process of being reinstalled, she said.
The original sculpture depicts an American Indian holding the bow and standing over a bison.
On Friday, police sent out a Metro Denver Crime Stoppers news release asking for the public’s help in locating the suspect in the late August incident. The sculpture was damaged during the bow’s removal.
Created by Preston Powers, son of nationally famous sculptor Hiram Powers, “The Closing Era” was exhibited at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, according to a Denver Post clipping from 1932 and provided by the Denver Public Library.
The artwork was created as a private project that fell through at the last minute, the article said. A group of women wanted to buy the statue for the state of Colorado after seeing it at the World’s Fair, but Preston Powers refused the money and presented the sculpture to the state. It was then erected outside the Capitol.
Powers taught sculpture at the University of Denver.
Police are searching for the suspect, who would face charges of theft and criminal mischief.
Anyone with information about the theft is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
Elizabeth Hernandez: 303-954-1223, ehernandez@denverpost.com or
