![\"AllentownPsycheSculpture2.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/static.lehigh-v.lehigh-valley.production.k1.m1.brightspot.cloud\/dims4\/default\/5c61a7d\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/4000x2252+0+0\/resize\/880x495!\/quality\/90\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Flehigh-valley-brightspot.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fa3%2F8f%2F46baaf8f4c06b01d3d1b6c6ef5ad%2Fallentownpsychesculpture2.jpg\")
<\/p>\nALLENTOWN, Pa. \u2014 A sculpture that witnessed the rise and fall of three Allentown theaters \u2014 two more than a century ago \u2014 now stands outside a new venue that officials hope will stand the test of time.<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania Revenue Secretary Pat Browne, Mayor Matt Tuerk and City Center Vice President Jane Heft on Thursday night unveiled and rededicated \u201cThe Abduction of Psyche\u201d outside the Archer Music Hall in downtown Allentown.<\/p>\n
The 8-foot marble statue was the \u201cmost cherished feature\u201d of the Rialto Theatre, which opened on the same block in 1921 after two other venues \u2014 The Noflaw and The Lyceum \u2014 opened there in the previous decade, according to the marker detailing its story.<\/p>\n
The statue \u201cwas transplanted to a suburban community of the city, like most of the activity which once flourished here.”<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania Revenue Secretary Pat Browne<\/p>\n
It stood for decades in the Rialto\u2019s grand foyer under 25-foot ceilings, depicting a scene in which Eros \u2014 the Greek mythological counterpart to the Roman god of love, Cupid \u2014 is sent to avenge his mother\u2019s rage against Psyche for worshiping human beauty.<\/p>\n
Eros is depicted as an archer, with a bow in his left hand and a quiver on his hip as Psyche drapes over his arm in the work by sculptor Antonio Batillo.<\/p>\n
The statue was sold and moved to the South Mall in Salisbury Township in 1969 amid fears the Rialto could no longer support its 5,000-pound weight, according to the marker. <\/p>\n
It \u201cwas transplanted to a suburban community of the city, like most of the activity which once flourished here,\u201d Browne said Thursday.<\/p>\n
The Rialto was demolished in the mid-1980s, and many businesses set up shop on the block before City Center opened the Archer and the Moxy, a boutique hotel on the corner of Hamilton and Tenth streets. <\/p>\n
\u2018A beacon of urban excellence\u2019<\/p>\n
The statue\u2019s return to its \u201coriginal home\u201d marks downtown Allentown\u2019s \u201c21st century renaissance\u201d and \u201cthe perpetual value of performing arts\u201d to the area, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cArt is everywhere; art is around every corner in our city. It makes us a more attractive place, inviting people to explore this beautiful downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mayor Matt Tuerk<\/p>\n
The revenue secretary called the Archer Music Hall \u201ca beacon of urban excellence in the midst of suburban, white-drywall utility.\u201d<\/p>\n
The venue was named in honor of City Center President J.B. Reilly\u2019s grandfather, Frank Archerie.<\/p>\n
And it will now be watched over by an archer in Eros.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jason Addy<\/p>\n
\/<\/p>\n
LehighValleyNews.com<\/p>\n
Mayor Matt Tuerk, Revenue Secretary Pat Browne and City Center Vice President Jane Heft unveil “The Abduction of Psyche” statue Thursday, Oct. 9, outside the Archer Music Hall in downtown Allentown. <\/p>\n
Mayor Matt Tuerk thanked Browne, who long represented Allentown in the state House and Senate, and Heft for the \u201cincredible gift.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s absolutely beautiful,\u201d Tuerk said, calling it \u201cthe latest and perhaps the most engaging investment\u201d in the streetscape along the city\u2019s main corridor, which also includes the Arts Walk connector, new lighting at the Soldiers and Sailors Monument and other improvements.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat’s been our core mission from the beginning, not just to build buildings but to create places that people want to be in. Public art is a really critical part of creating these kinds of places and spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n
City Center President J.B. Reilly<\/p>\n
The \u201cbreathtaking\u201d statue will be a feature of many visitors\u2019 experiences in downtown Allentown, Tuerk said, highlighting the value of public art.<\/p>\n
\u201cArt is everywhere; art is around every corner in our city,\u201d Tuerk said. \u201cIt makes us a more attractive place, inviting people to explore this beautiful downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n
City Center President J.B. Reilly said \u201cThe Abduction of Psyche\u201d and dozens of other public art installations add \u201cvibrancy\u201d to Allentown. Most of the company\u2019s developments include public spaces and art, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat’s been our core mission from the beginning, not just to build buildings but to create places that people want to be in,\u201d Reilly told LehighValleyNews.com. \u201cPublic art is a really critical part of creating these kinds of places and spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ALLENTOWN, Pa. \u2014 A sculpture that witnessed the rise and fall of three Allentown theaters \u2014 two more…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17976,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[12749,119,12750,121,120,12751,12752,12753,12754],"class_list":{"0":"post-17975","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-allentown","8":"tag-abduction-of-psyche-allentown","9":"tag-allentown","10":"tag-allentown-archer-music-hall-statue","11":"tag-allentown-headlines","12":"tag-allentown-news","13":"tag-allentown-unveils-new-statue","14":"tag-hamilton-street-statue-allentown","15":"tag-the-abduction-of-psyche-statue","16":"tag-what-is-the-statue-outside-archer-music-hall"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}