Mahlon Dickerson Eyre (April 13, 1821 – August 28, 1882) was an American banker from

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

who later lived in

Florence, Italy Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence was a centre of medieval European t ...

. Born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, the son of a successful merchant, he attended

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

. He traveled in Europe, and settled in

, where he met his wife Isabella. He exhibited 14 works at the

1876 Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition, officially the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876. It was the first official wo ...

in Philadelphia. One of these was a marble statuette of ''Hercules and Antaeus'', a copy after

Stefano Maderno Stefano Maderno (''c.'' 1576 – 17 September 1636) was one of the greatest Roman sculptors of the early 17th century. Biography Information about Maderno's life is scarce and often contradictory. He was long supposed to have been a brother ...

's c. 1622-25 original. He is best-known for owning a twice-lifesize marble statue of ''

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

'', depicted standing at the prow of a boat while crossing the Delaware River. The statue was carved by Fratelli Gianfranchi and was displayed at the

Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition, officially the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876. It was the first official wo ...

of 1876 in

. The statue was purchased for

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County. It was the federal capital, capital of the United States from November 1 until D ...

in 1889. It was installed in

Cadwalader Park Cadwalader Park is a city park located in Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. The nearly green space is Trenton's oldest park. It is named for Thomas Cadwalader, who lived for a while near Trenton where he became the chief bu ...

in 1892, and moved to the

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross, close to the Hertfordshire border. It was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it b ...

neighborhood of Trenton in 1976. Eyre died in Florence. He is buried in

Bagni di Lucca Bagni di Lucca (formerly Bagno a Corsena) is a comune of Tuscany, Italy, in the Province of Lucca with a population of about 6,100. The comune has 27 named frazioni (wards). History Bagni di Lucca has been known for its thermal springs since the ...

, Tuscany, Italy. He was an uncle of the architect

Wilson Eyre Wilson Eyre Jr. (October 30, 1858 – October 23, 1944) was an American architect, teacher and writer who practiced in the Philadelphia area. He is known for his deliberately informal and welcoming country houses, and for being an innovator in t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, Mahlon Dickerson 1821 births 1882 deaths Businesspeople from Philadelphia Princeton University alumni American expatriates in Italy