There are 20 representations of Panthers (cougars) in and about
Pitt's campus, including ten painted
fiberglass panthers decorated by various student groups that are placed around the campus by the Pitt Student Government. The oldest representations of panthers are four
Panther statues that guard each corner of the
Panther Hollow Bridge. Other
Oakland locations include both inside and in front of the
William Pitt Union, outside the
Petersen Events Center, "Pitt the Panther" on the
carousel in
Schenley Plaza, the Panther head fountain on the front of the
Cathedral of Learning, and the Pitt Panther statue outside
Heinz Field on Pittsburgh's
North Shore. This does not include the large image of a Panther embedded into
Litchfield Towers Fifth Avenue entrance plaza pavers (best seen from high above) or the panther depicted in a neon artwork "Tree of Knowledge" by Jane Haskell inside the William Pitt Union.
Panther Hollow Bridge Panthers Giuseppe Moretti's (1859–1935) four
cast bronze Panther statues created in 1897 guard each corner of
Panther Hollow Bridge in
Schenley Park adjacent to the Pitt campus. Panthers were once found abundantly throughout the region and became to symbolize it. These statues, and
Panther Hollow, existed prior to the university's move by 1909 to Oakland which includes the neighborhood of Panther Hollow adjacent to the school's campus. Moretti's
Panther statues soon became adopted representations of the university and of the Pittsburgh Panthers and became a popular photographic site for visitors and students of the university and were widely used in university and student publications. Representations of Moretti statues were also used in university logos. At one time, painting or defacing the Moretti sculptures was a popular form of vandalism committed by the fans of rival universities prior to the schools' football games.
William Pitt Union Moretti Panther . An 1897 panther sculpture by
Giuseppe Moretti, the same artist who sculpted the Panther Hollow Panthers, sits inside a paneled wood case in the Tansky Family Lounge on the first floor of the
William Pitt Union.
Panther Fountain A panther head spews water in this
fountain located at the base of the
Cathedral of Learning, which was constructed from 1926-1937. Joseph Gattoni did the Cathedral's stone work, although no information is available on whether he specifically worked on the fountain.
Millennium Panther This Panther outside the
William Pitt Union is ten-and-a-half-feet long and was cast with a sleek and muscular tone in pure bronze by sculptor Miriani Guido in
Parma,
Italy. With one paw poised in the air, the panther is designed to appear ready to pounce on an unsuspecting enemy. The statue arrived on campus in May 2001 and was stored over the summer in a University warehouse until placed outside the
William Pitt Union at the end of August 2001. A
time capsule to be opened in the year 2051 was buried beneath the statue. The project, a gift to the university from the Student Government Board to commemorate the beginning of the 3rd millennium, began with deliberations in April 1999, cost $72,000 ($62,000 plus a $10,000 base), the most student government has ever spent on one project up until that time. The plaque on the statue reads The Pitt Panther Dedicated August 31, 2001 with the belief that scholarship,integrity and the unyielding spirit of our past will carry usinto the new millennium and beyond.A gift from the 1999 Student BodyGeorge J. MongellPresident, Student Government
Mark A. NordenbergChancellor Students, alumni, and fans rub the nose of the Millennium Panther in order to bring good luck to the university's teams prior to athletic contests. This tradition was featured in a national television advertisement for the 2012
Hyundai Tucson automobile.
Panther outside Acrisure Stadium across from downtown
Pittsburgh This Panther sits outside Gate A of
Acrisure Stadium across the Allegheny River from
downtown Pittsburgh. It is based on the design by Thomas N. Mitrakos, who played football for The University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Steelers, for the award for the Pitt Varsity Letter Club Awardees of Distinction. Dedicated on September 6, 2002. The statue, long is set on a
granite base. Paved in the stone around the base is an image of the
Cathedral of Learning. The statue was made possible by a donation from Charles “Corky” (ENGR ’58) and Frances M. (CAS ‘58) Cost.
Panther outside the Pete This Panther sits at the main entrance of the
Petersen Events Center. Similar to the Panther outside
Heinz Field, it is based on the design by Thomas N. Mitrakos for the award for the Pitt Varsity Letter Club Awardees of Distinction.
Pitt the Panther “Pitt the Panther”, adopted by Henry and Linda Haller, is one of the animals on a
Victorian-style carousel, opened in 2006 and built by Chance Rides Manufacturing of
Wichita, Kansas, and funded by the
PNC Financial Services Group. It holds 20 people, on 15 1950s-style animals or in a
handicapped-accessible chariot and a spinning tub suitable for small children and their parents. The carousel is
Schenley Plaza’s feature family attraction and the
menagerie of animals, including "Pitt the Panther", symbolizes the fellowship and diversity of Pittsburgh. However, it is not the first carousel in
Schenley Park. In 1913 the original Schenley Park Carousel was opened to the public at the corner of Panther Hollow and Greenfield roads. The original carousel also had a menagerie of animals. The PNC Carousel in Schenley Plaza operates April through October and is open seven days a week.
Homecoming Panthers In order to create a new
homecoming tradition, the Pitt Student Government board purchased ten
fiberglass panther statues in 2007 for $60,000 from Heavy Industries of
Calgary,
Canada. Proposed to be an annual homecoming event, the approximately tall by wide panthers are to repainted and redecorated by student organizations that will be selected from applications on an annual basis. Originally planned for a 2007 homecoming introduction, manufacturing delays prevented initial decoration and first unveiling until a ceremony on January 10, 2008. Following the ceremony, the panthers were placed in and around Pitt's campus. In a Fall 2008 article of
The Pitt News, it was announced that the statues decorated by the Black Action Society,
The Pitt News, the Pitt Pathfinders, and the
Pitt Band would be spared another year due to their designs. Both
The Pitt News and the Pitt Pathfinders have paid to have their panther statues kept permanently in their respective locations, while the Pitt Band is attempting to raise money to purchase its panther in time for its centennial in 2011. ==References==