Overview

• The WWII-era work by Lt. Hunter Wood was unveiled Monday in the Elliot M. See Room of Wiley Hall after a month-long conservation effort.
• Acting Superintendent Capt. Tony Ceraolo framed the move as preserving the academy’s cultural and historical legacy for midshipmen.
• Restoration steps included reopening the canvas, reinforcing the stretcher, repairing surface damage, and adding a new plaque and frame hardware.
• The artwork had been taken down in 2023 after a complaint from the Military Religious Freedom Foundation and placed in a lower, flood-prone area.
• Duffy publicly celebrated the reinstallation, while MRFF criticized the decision and said it is weighing federal litigation.