Aug 27, 2006

A land for a woolen coat


In the gardens of the Arlington’s town hall, the Robbins Memorial Flagstaff exhibits on its pedestal four bronze seated figures symbolizing Patriotism, Liberty, Obedience, and Honor. Before the pilgrims arrived in New England, the Boston area was inhabited by Indian tribes. Squaw Sachem sold her land to the colonist John Winthrop for few shillings and a woolen coat every winter for the rest of her life. Represented on the left is the mother pilgrim, and on the right is Squaw Sachem.

Dans les jardins de la mairie d’Arlington, le piédestal du Robbins Memorial Flagstaff représente quatre statues assises symbolisant le Patriotisme, la Liberté, l’Obéissance et l’Honneur. Avant que les pilgrims ne s’installent en Nouvelle Angleterre, la région de Boston était habitée par des tribus indiennes. Squaw Sachem vendit ses terres au colon John Winthrop pour quelques shillings et en échange d’un manteau de laine fourni tous les hivers jusqu’à sa mort.

4 comments:

Michael Salone said...

Wow! I never knew that! You must also be learning a lot making this blog Alex - Good for you!

M. Rafiq said...

It's funny how the 'value' of something can be so relative. I mean land vs. woolen coat...come on! But things weigh out different for different people...

Alex said...

Hi Michael, Thanks for stopping by so often and encouraging me. I am glad you like the information I post.

Hi Mar, Yeah, it's hard for us to imagine such a deal.

-Alex

Nathalie H.D. said...

quatre statues assises symbolisant Si les quatre statues representent le Patriotisme, la Liberté, l’Obéissance et l’Honneur, quelles vertus representent respectivement Squaw Sachem et la mere des pelerins ? En tout cas, merci pour cette belle photo et le tres interessant commentaire.