Have you visited LancasterHistory’s Thieves & Vagabonds: A History of Law & Justice in Lancaster County exhibit? It chronicles key moments in the history of law and justice in Lancaster County from the 18th century to the 20th century. From prisons to prohibition, Thieves & Vagabonds explores the making, breaking, and remaking of laws over 300 years of Lancaster County’s history.
At the entrance to the display were two larger-than-life heads. These decapitated noggins were once part of two Lady of Justice statues (1854 and 1900) that sat atop the Lancaster County Courthouse. Depictions of Lady Justice are usually blindfolded, signifying that justice should be impartial. However, the informational placard stated, “For reasons currently unknown, the statues that have sat atop Lancaster County’s courthouse have not been blindfolded.”
I was instantly curious about the origins of Lady Justice and why the eyes of Lancaster’s statues were uncovered.
The statue of Lady Justice is one of the most iconic symbols of law and order worldwide. She is typically depicted as a blindfolded woman holding a sword and a scale. Today, the blindfold is a powerful symbol of impartiality, suggesting justice is blind to wealth, power, and other personal characteristics. It represents the ideal that justice should be applied equally to everyone, regardless of background or circumstances. However, she hasn’t always worn a blindfold.
The prototype for Lady Justice dates back to Ancient Egypt, the goddess Ma’at, and later Isis. Ma’at was the goddess of truth, justice, balance, and, most importantly, order. According to Ancient Egyptian mythology, after death, everyone had to pass through the Hall of Judgment, where their heart was weighed against Ma’at’s feather of truth. If the deceased person’s heart is weighed against Ma’at’s feather, they may continue their journey to the afterlife. If not, their journey ended.
The Greeks, likely borrowing from the Egyptians, created the goddess Themis. She was the personification of justice, the goddess of wisdom and good counsel, and the interpreter of the gods’ will. She was often presented as a woman in a long robe, leaning on a spear or a sword, and holding a scale in her hand.
The Romans expanded upon the concept with Justitia (or Iustitia), the Roman goddess of Justice. Emperor Augustus introduced Justitia. Justice was among the four virtues celebrated in his clipeus virtutis (Latin for “shield of bravery”).
This marble copy of the clipeus virtutis of Augustus, in Latin, reads: “The senate and the Roman people give to Augustus, son of the divine Caesar, in his 8th consulate, the shield for virtue, clemency, justice, and piety towards the gods and his native land.”
Over time, Iustitia became a symbol for the virtue of justice with which every emperor wished to associate his regime. For example, Emperor Vespasian minted coins with the image of the goddess seated on a throne. After Vespasian, many emperors used the image of the goddess to proclaim themselves protectors of justice.
Though formally called a goddess with her own temple and cult shrine in Rome, from the onset, she was viewed more as an artistic symbolic personification than an actual deity with religious significance.
However, beginning in the 16th century, depictions of Lady Justice started wearing a blindfold. At first, the blindfold was a satirical addition intended to show Justice as blind to the injustice carried on before her. However, over time, the blindfold was reinterpreted to represent her impartiality.
While that’s a brief history of Lady Justice, it still doesn’t answer why Lancaster County’s statue does not wear one. The possible answer might lie with London’s Old Bailey statue of Lady Justice.
She, too, does not wear a blindfold. An Old Bailey Courthouse brochure gives some possible insight into the blindfold’s absence. It explains that Lady Justice’s “maidenly form” guarantees her impartiality, so adding the blindfold is redundant.
What do you think?
Learn More
Learn more at LancasterHistory’s Thieves & Vagabonds: A History of Law & Justice in Lancaster County. The exhibition chronicles critical moments in the history of law and justice in Lancaster County from the 18th century to the 20th century. From prisons to prohibition, Thieves & Vagabonds explores the making, breaking, and remaking of laws over 300 years of Lancaster County’s history. Visit LancasterHistory’s newest exhibition for a deep dive into crime and punishment and reform and repair in the Lancaster community. Click here for more information.
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1875 lithograph of the Lancaster County CourthousePrice range: $27.99 through $29.99
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Lancaster’s Old Courthouse: Witness to Great Moments in American History
Great moments in American history took place in Penn Square, many inside the old Lancaster courthouse. Click here to read more.
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1864 Map of the City of Lancaster, PennsylvaniaPrice range: $21.99 through $25.99
Art: Lancaster County Courthouse 1875
Here is the Lancaster County Courthouse, as seen in the 1875 Historical Atlas of Lancaster County. The publication was compiled by the famous cartographer Major L. H. Everts of Geneva, Illinois, who, in 1865, joined a partnership with his Civil War comrade, Captain. T. H. Thompson. Click here to read more.
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Interesting article. Something I thought of: in one sense, justice isn’t blind, but actively investigates claims and discerns the whole truth, not just what the claimants say. (Of course, that can easily be abused.)