George Washington rides his bronze horse over the public square in Richmond on the Virginia Washington Monument, a 19th-century neoclassical statue known locally simply as the Washington Monument. In front of you is a 21-foot (6.4 m), 18,000-pound (8,200 kg) bronze statue of George Washington on horseback. Below Washington, finished after the American Civil War, are statues of six other noted Virginians who took part in the American Revolution: Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Andrew Lewis, John Marshall, George Mason, and Thomas Nelson Jr. The lowest level bears bronze female allegorical figures that represent relevant events or themes associated with those men.
On April 30, 1863, elements of George Washington on horseback on the monument were incorporated into the Seal of the Confederate States of America. The monument was designed by Thomas Crawford (1814–1857) and completed under the supervision of Randolph Rogers (1825–1892) after Crawford's death. The cornerstone was laid in 1850, and it became the second equestrian statue of Washington to be unveiled in the United States.
The monument also serves as the terminus for Grace Street. The public square and the terminus for Grace Street stretch out before you.