Long-lost statues returned to Chicago Board of Trade
Published: June 10, 2005
The Chicago Board of Trade reclaimed a large piece of its history on Thursday when two five-ton statues that once adorned the front of the exchange’s original building but went missing in 1929 finally returned back home.
The 12-foot, exquisitely carved granite statues, representing goddesses of industry and agriculture, disappeared when the exchange’s original 1885 building in Chicago’s financial district was demolished to make way for the current Art Deco headquarters.
The statues resurfaced in 1978 in a suburban forest preserve that, coincidentally, was the former estate of Arthur Cutten, a prominent grain trader in the early 1900s.
“Exactly how the statues made the journey from LaSalle Street to the Cutten estate is a mystery,” the exchange said.
It was then years before anyone realized the statues were the ones that formerly graced the entrance of the oldest U.S. futures exchange. In 2003, the CBOT learned of the statues’ existence and negotiated their safe return.
“The statues signify the history of the Board of Trade and the depth of its roots as the pinnacle of the business community in Chicago,” said exchange member Virginia McGathey.
Exchange Chairman Charles Carey termed the statues “inspiring reminders of the past” and said he would “absolutely” consider touching them for luck in the future.
The goddesses have been installed in the CBOT’s outdoor plaza. Their sculptor is unknown.
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