Sculptors of the Angel Moroni

There have been few men which have been called upon to sculpt the Angel Moroni for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Each sculptor brought their own unique style for their given time.

• The Nauvoo Temple
  This was the first temple to have a figure of an angel. This angel was flying in a horizontal position after the design of a weather vane. William Weeks was the architect and it is supposed he designed the weather vane as well.
• Cyrus Dallin
  He sculpted the Angel Moroni which is on the Salt Lake Temple. It is made of hammered copper covered in gold leaf and was placed on the temple April 6, 1892.
• Torleif Knaphus
  Knaphus sculpted a replica of the Dallin angel in the 1930’s. Castings of his angel were not placed on temples until many years later (1983).
• Millard Malin
  His angel is known as the second Angel Moroni statue as it was placed on the Los Angeles Temple in 1953. This angel wears a Mayan style cloak and holds the Gold Plates in his left hand.
• Avard Fairbanks
  His angel was placed on the Washington DC Temple in 1974. His angel is the tallest of all the Angel Moroni statues at 5.5 meters and weighs over 4,000 lbs and is cast in bronze. Seattle, Jordan River, and Mexico City each have castings of this angel which are slightly smaller at 4.6 meters.

Karl Quilter – Angel Moroni

Karl Quilter has sculpted three different angels for LDS Temples. His first was completed in 1978. He made two sizes, one at 3 meters tall and the other just over two meters.

The Quilter Angel Moroni statues were designed to reduce cost and weight of the previous bronze cast Angel Moroni statues. These new Angel Moroni statues were cast in fiberglass making them exceptionally light weight, less expensive to fabricate, ship and install.

In 1998 Quilter was commissioned to create a new Angel Moroni which would correspond with the upcoming dedication fo the Nauvoo Temple. Karl Quilter’s Angel Moroni Statues are over 150 temples throughout the world.

The Angel Moroni Statue purchased through this sight is an artist replica of the one seen on the image on the right. This is one of the most popular designs used by architects which is seen on most temples. For example, the Angel Moroni on the Draper Temple is this same design.

Symbolism of The Angel Moroni

The Angel Moroni is symbolic of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth. Before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the angel shall sound his trumpet usering in the beginning of the Millennial Reign of the Lord.

Wherefore, be not deceived, but continue in steadfastness, looking forth for the heavens to be shaken, and the earth to tremble and to reel to and fro as a drunken man, and for the valleys to be exalted, and for the mountains to be made low, and for the rough places to become smooth—and all this when the angel shall sound his trumpet. D&C 49:23