In 2000, as part of our Renaissance Garden restoration and redesign  the Friends of Villa Terrace and the Villa Terrace Art Museum sought to create a gate along Lincoln Memorial Drive to welcome visitors to the Museum and gardens that paired with the ironwork and imagery throughout the Museum and gardens. The Demmer Neptune Gate is the result.

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The Demmer Neptune Gate is a wrought-iron masterpiece rivaling Cyril Colnik's work. It took three Wisconsin blacksmith two years to complete the gate. It is a major benchmark of traditional ironwork.

 

The Demmer Foundation made this gift to Milwaukee possible, while the Wisconsin Arts Board underwrote documentation of its creation. Learn more about the gate and its construction below in the words of those directly involved with the project.