Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-03-21
A MAGNIFICENT MAUSOLEUM.


Probably the Grandest Work of Art in TIE coun.
try---Ready to Receive the Remains of A. T.
Stewart.
The mausoleum in the Cathedral of
the Incarnation at Garden City. Long
Island. which is the Stewart memorial,
is the most elegant and costly structure
of its kind ever produced IN this coun-
try. The contract price for the crypt
was $50, 900, and it Is not presuming too
much to say now, at its completion, that
the cost is fully $125, 900. The crypt is
Immediately under the chancel and sane
tuary of the cathedral, and is reached by
stairs of massive granite slabs from the
western entrance. The shape of the
structure Is that of polygon having
fourteen bays. It's interior diameter is
tWenty-three feet, and its height to the
top of the dome ceiling Is nineteen feet.
At each argyle there are clusters OF Gothic
columns, three detached shafts in each
column, making IN all forty-two shafts
in fourteen clusters. These columns rest
on nodded bases, having horiated capt.
tails enriched with natural foliage. The
bases of the capitals are of Vermont
statuary marble, the cost of which was
SO per cubic foot. The shafts have been
cut out of precious marbles, rich In color
and selected so as to harmonic and form
agreeable contrasts with the general ex-
preston of the interior. Perhaps some
indication of the costliness of this struc-
ture can be conceived by stating that
each OF the columns that support the
dome is of different varieties of marble.
Italy, France, Scotland, Ireland, Swift
erland, Germany, SPAN, Portugal,
Belgium and the Mediterranean islands
have been ransacked for rare and costly
varieties.
The floor is of white italian marble,
two feet thick, divided into panels ra-
dating toward the center. The borders
are OF dark marble. These panels, IN
stead of being arranged in small pieces,
as IN encaustic tile, are IN one piece,
adorned with brasses worked IN beraldIc
designs. The borders of the panels are
double, and are carried around. The
walls are covered with inlaid work
crosses fora, crosses botany and other
emblems, In white marble. The floor is
laid on two feet of concrete, upon which
is q layer of thick glass next to the mar
bic. This is to prevent moisture from
striking through the floor, thus prevent
ing the chilling dampness that frequently
peryades buildings of this description.
A finely nodded base is carried
around the walls, resting on a plipth
course, and following the line of the
walls, entering into all the recesses
formed by the window reveils. This
gives full scope for agreeable form. A
line Of wainscotlng of very rich and
elaborate tracery is carried around the
walls to the height of seven feet, and
finishes on line with the window sills.
The tracery is capped with finely
nodded cornice, enriched with line Of
carved LEAKAGE. Oak, cypress, myrtle
and chestnut leaves predominant, and are
all exquisitively delineated.
The bays IN the mausoleum are all
open. Nine Of them are used as win
dows, whence the structure is lighted
from the north, south and west. These
windows are carried up to the line of the
groining. The sills are nodded, the re-
wells filed with beautiful tIacery, con-
tinued from the tracery of the wsinscot-
ing. In each arch there Is a perforated
window head, enriched with foliations
of rich and delicate design. Each head
differs from its neighbor. These win
dow heads spring from the window
lambs, there being no mulhons, and rest
on finely carved corbels. The tracery is
about four inches thick, and is perfo-
rated and finished on both sides to allow
the light to pass through the windows.
These are about eight inches away from
the inner line of this tracery. A hood
molding, with carved corbel,
is carried around the open
ing above the tracery Two of the inner
bays are used as entrances through the
crypt, one on each side, and three are
open, whence the crypt is partially
lighted. The tracery on these bays
shows equally well on both sides. In
two of the jambs next TO the entrance
IN the mausoleum are inches resting on
oorbeIs and finished with rich traceried
and crocketed canopies carried up to the
ceiling. These are considered beautiful
works of art, having tracery buttresses
enriched with pendants and crocketed
pinnacles. The insides OF the canopies
are groined and furnished with bosses at
the Intersections. These inches have
bosses to hold flowers. The lower parts
of these two bays are to be used fol
warming the coils to keep an even tenn