The Four Cardinal Virtues

Using a classical vocabulary of symbols and allegorical figures, Carl Paul Jennewein designed four cast aluminum urns to represent The Four Cardinal Virtues: Temperance, Justice, Prudence, and Fortitude. The urns were installed in the U.S. Department of Justice building in Washington, D.C., in 1935.

For the urn titled Temperance, the sculptor includes a young man holding a bridle and reins. These items traditionally represent the virtues of restraint and control. In Justice, a blindfolded woman carries a sword and scales. The scales and blindfold represent an unbiased and balanced approach to justice, and the sword signifies authority and power. Jennewein depicts Prudence as a semi-nude woman who holds up the two-faced head of Janus, a Roman deity who could see the future with one face and the past with the other. Prudence, similarly, requires both foresight and hindsight to make the best judgment. A hissing snake represents the possibility of danger or temptation.  Prudence crushes it under her foot, suggesting that her caution and wisdom help one evade risk or misfortune. Fortitude is represented by the classical hero Hercules, who holds his club over his left shoulder and the pelt of the Nemean lion in his right hand. Hercules defeated the Nemean lion in the first of his twelve labors, and this demonstration of strength and stamina, likely persuaded Jennewein to represent the virtue of fortitude using this classical figure.