William Wetmore Story (artist)

The son of a U.S. Supreme Court justice, and educated at Harvard, Story abandoned a promising law career to pursue the far less certain profession of sculptor. He settled in Rome—the hub for marble sculptors of his day. Besides being a sculptor of wide reputation, he was an accomplished poet and playwright. And like many playwrights from Shakespeare onward, he was fascinated by the darker, more complicated characters from history, legend, and scripture. Other than commemorative monuments, King Saul was one of Story’s few full-size male figures.