Rising from the center of the Green like a frozen stalagmite, the accumulated snowfall that crunches beneath the feet of students during Winter term slowly transforms into the annual Winter Carnival centerpiece. The sculpture is usually the focus of the weekend festivities, and it has a long history complete with world records, vandalism and, yes, even dynamite.
Although the College held the first unofficial Winter Carnival celebration in 1911, the popular tradition of erecting a colossal snow sculpture at the center of the Green did not begin until 1925. During Carnival that year, a realistic four-turret medieval castle presided over the festivities.
A 37-foot snow sculpture of College founder Eleazar Wheelock defiantly brandishing a 15-gallon beer mug rose from the Green in 1939, the year F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of "The Great Gatsby," visited Hanover to work on the film "Winter Carnival."
Throughout history, the snow sculptures have ranged greatly in size and scope. In 1944, a year before the end of World War II, students merely built a small structure which had a sign at the base that read "Wartime Carnival."
In 1980, however, the man-made snow pile prepared for the sculpture was so big that students were able to ski down the makeshift mountain.
Many of the original designs for the snow sculpture have planned for structures over 50 feet high, but none of the completed sculptures have reached that height. In 1987, students built the Carnival's tallest-ever sculpture, a 47.5-foot saxophone-playing snowman, which was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records.
Uncooperative New England weather has often inhibited sculpture efforts. In 1957, snow was in such short supply that students needed to shave ice off Occom Pond in order to build the sculpture dedicated to Ullr, the Norse god of skiing.
In 1996, the snow sculpture of a stegosaurus eating Baker Tower was washed away by rain less than a day after it had been completed.
The first Carnival without a snow sculpture was held in 1989, due to lack of building material. Less than a foot of snow fell that winter.
By contrast, in 1955, the gigantic ice statue featuring an ebullient Eskimo riding the head of a whale lasted until April . The College eventually had to demolish the structure with dynamite.
Occasionally, lack of student involvement has also hampered the sculpture's construction. In 1969, some members of the administration were so concerned that the structure was behind schedule that they sent a memo to their colleagues asking them to "bring one bucket and one shovel from 7:30 to 9:30, Monday, February 3." This building period was deemed "Administration Night."
Today, members of the Winter Carnival Council design the snow sculpture, but in the past the College held a design contest open to all students.
Snow sculpture designs have ranged from depictions of the Grinch and the Cat and the Hat to Norse and Eskimo gods such as Igluk and Hyderdahl. Even the comic strip characters Calvin and Hobbes have been depicted in a (copyright-infringing) likeness on the Green.
In 1957, Clif Olds '57 designed a sculpture of a Native American emerging from a base of flames, inspired by the Robert Frost poem "Fire and Ice." Builders used a telephone poler to sustain the structure's 30-foot height.
The dragon sculpture constructed in 1969 breathed actual fire fueled by a butane tank installed in its mouth.
In 2005, a Peter Pan-themed pirate ship featured 52-foot-tall twin masts and an 8-foot slide accessible to students who ventured onto the ship's deck.
Regardless of the design, building the snow structure requires considerable work. In their February 1960 issue, the magazine New Hampshire Profiles reported that the 2,000 man-hours needed to complete the structure were "equal to a year's work for one man with a two-week vacation thrown in."
In past years, as in this one, students have sometimes worked late into the night and early morning, and pressured classmates crossing the Green to come help.
In 1963, a determined undergraduate called out to a passerby, "Hey, stupid, pass up another bucket of snow." He later discovered the man he had addressed was then-President of the College John Sloane Dickey.
Snow sculptures have also been the victims of the occasional vandalism. An anonymous vandal inserted a large wooden sword into 2003's sculpture of Gandalf, the wizard from the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
In 1979, students painted the snow sculpture red, green and black to protest the lack of minority recruitment among students, administration and faculty. During the Gulf War, students protested the U.S. involvement in Iraq by throwing red paint, symbolizing blood, on that year's sculpture of the mythological god Neptune in a chariot.
This year's snow sculpture celebrates 100 years of the Dartmouth Outing Club, the Carnival's founding organization.
