Mount Rushmore Studio Model

When sculptor Gutzon Borglum began designing the monument for Mount Rushmore, he used the faces depicted here in his 1/12th scale model. Over the 14 years of on and off work, fissures and unexpected defects in the rock on the face of Mount Rushmore dictated the form of the monument as much as Borglum. He had to change his designs numerous times.

This model does show just how incredibly three-dimensional Mount Rushmore actually is. Borglum found very good rock close to the surface where Washin