The sculpture was completed in 1921 and Deering dedicated it to his lifelong friend, Lieutenant Commander William Henry Schuetze, who died in 1902.

The Carrara marble sculpture rests on a granite base and depicts a woman sitting on a rocky ledge.

[5][4] Serenity is owned and maintained by the National Park Service (NPS), an agency of the United States Department of the Interior.

[5] Charles Deering, an American businessman, philanthropist, and art collector, built a house in Sitges, Spain, in 1917.

Among the many artists whose works were displayed on the property, now housing the Palau de Maricel museum, was Josep Clarà, a prominent Spanish-Catalan sculptor whom Deering befriended.

[8] Deering dedicated the sculpture to his longtime friend, Lieutenant Commander William Henry Schuetze, who had died in Washington, D.C., in 1902.

[9] After his death, Captain Samuel C. Lemly, Judge Advocate General of the Navy, said "No words of praise are too strong for this gallant officer."

[11][12] The United States Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) selected a site in Meridian Hill Park in Washington, D.C.[13] The sculpture was placed in a storage facility of the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds until it was ready to be moved to a permanent locatiion.

[18] The first recorded act of vandalism in Meridian Hill Park took place when hammers were used to leave marks on Serenity.

[4] In April 1926, someone put paint on the figure's hair and cheeks, ink was splashed on it, and she was partially draped with a piece of cloth.

It was during this time a local neighborhood group, the Columbia Heights Citizens' Association (CHCA), requested Serenity be covered or removed.

"[24] In 1960, a congressional report noted the artworks in Meridian Hill Park had to be cleaned every two weeks to remove makeup and other vandalism.

[26] In 2001, the NPS suggested Serenity be placed in storage until it could be repaired, but due to its fragile, damaged state, this did not occur.