The tragedy of Thomas Crawford, sculptor of the Statue of Freedom

The Statue of Freedom, which sits on top of the Capitol Dome in Washington, DC, was created by Thomas Crawford. At the peak of his career in 1856, while busy completing multiple commissions for the new Capitol extensions, he developed diplopia and consulted the leading oculists of the time in Paris, Drs. Desmarres and Sichel, who were certain he had an intraorbital tumor. Two American physicians were also involved in Crawford's care. Both became controversial after treating Crawford, one because of his method of diagnosis, the other because of his unproven method of treating cancer. Desperate, Crawford agreed to undergo an experimental treatment that destroyed the eye and orbital contents. He died 5 months later at age 44 and never saw any of his sculptures placed in the Capitol building.