Johnstown weekly Democrat. (Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa.) 1889-1916, 1889-08-30
THE LATEST DESIGN.

THE LATEST DESIGN.
which shall serve as monument to the
soldiers and sailors of the civil war. In
doing this, Brooklyn follows the example
of Hartford, as it has so often in the
past patterned itself on Connecticut.
Last year the common council author
lied 100000 to be spent on soldiers
and sailors monument and the matter
went 30 far that q design by Henry
Baerer, sculptor born in Prussia, but
American by long residence, was as good
as accepted From a raised platform,
reached by four flights OF stairs and
adorned with four large groups OF figures
in bronze, rose simple square pedestal
bearing four Corinthian columns and a
simple attic with wide cornice. Above
stood a draped figure Of Brooklyn on
half globe. AS the cut shows, the COM
position is not intricate, and in that re-
spect good, but 1t has little novelty, while
the proposed groups, which would be
the most important features, are far
from artistic. This is the design which
recent developments in the local politicS
of Brooklyn nipped in the bud in place
of it the arch here shown has been ac-
cepted.
That the change is one for the better
is very evident, II for no other reason,
that the arch is one Of the most dignified
and massive forms OF decoration for
great cities, and on this side of the world
one OF the rarest. At Hartford the arch
commemorative of the civil war is in the
nature of bridge entrance, such as ex-
listed in the Middle Ages, when bridges
we're fortified, and subsequently adorned
with structures semi-miltary in nature.
The Washington square arch is to be
less medieval, more classical. That al
Prospect park will in some respects al
proaeh the Roman triumphal arch, bUl
ally itself more to the Arc de Triomphe
de lEtoile of Paris 1t is to stand detached,
like that great arch. There will be no
suggestion Of a gateway, as we find at
Berlin in the Bradenburg Gate, which is
also an arch Of triumph. While at first
the arch of triumph may seem to portray
a gate, say the entrance to a conquered
town, the probabilities are against this
explanation, and in favor of it's evolution
from an independent structure of stone
which took the place of q perisha -
arch of wood run up for the triumphal
entry of a conqueror. Exactly so the
wooden arches on Fifth avenue wern
hastily constructed, and one of them
thought worthy Of perpctuation in stoGe.
The Brooklyn arch is to stand across
the roadw ay, after passing the fountain
and before reaching the entrance to the
park. Now modern streets are not 20
narrow as the ways of Rome. Unless an
arch is to be a giucrack ornament for q
lawn, it is necessary to have a wIGt
span but this entails a heavy body o.
masonry at each extremity; otherwise
the downward thrust of the arch woulG
be too great for the side shafts to bear.
The architect of the Brooklyn atch mas
met this difficulty by designing two
tower-like Masses and throwing between
them an arch OF much less thickness from
front to rear. He has also made this
part shallower from archivolt to cornice
than we ind il in French and Roman tri-
umphal arches. In these the relatively
higher and narrower opening below the
arch gives n.ole massive look to the
whole edilicr Moreover the Roman
arches of triumph bore very high attic-,
so that attic as well as entablature above
the arch might carry elaborate inscrip-
tions on O large scale. Hence the ma
sonry that supported them was very
thick but often ways for foot-pas5engers
were carried through the latter and thus
the heavy look of the sides somewhat re-
lieved. The chosen design calls for IA
span of 6i feet and measures 65 feet in
the clear from the roadway to the archi-
volt, while the outside measurements for
height and breadth are about 100 feet
each. Comparison with classical arches,
such as that of Septimus Severus ami
that of Titus, will demonstrate that GI by
50 is very large opening indeed, On
the other hand, little has been done to
relieve the heaviness of the two masses
of masonry which carry this superb
sweep.
These have not been pierced for foot
passengers. They contain stairways
reached by doors on the sides, by which
one ascends to chamber above the arch,
where relics Of the war battle-fags and
statues, may be preserved, and where
light is obtained from She roof in such a
way that no windows will detract from
the solid appearance Of the structure
AS the architect supposed when he made
his design that the arch wae to serve as a
gateway to the park, he treated his sub
iect accordingly, and made no provision
for the outer sides in the way of reliev-
ing hose sides from baroness, for the
outer shafts were To certain extent to
bo bI oxen by the walls abuGting, or by
some architectural device which might
attach the structure to the line of en-
closure for the park.
On the same understanding he sought
rather for relief for the two main shafts
in front and rear. For this purpose he
introduced solid projections which might
carry inscriptions or bas-reiiefs below,
and break the monotony OF the lower
front with sets Of triple round columns
! Just Olsen. aged. These projections sim
| ply olicigte as podestals to carry groups
Of statrary, indicated on his plan by
! purely Sancisnl figures, which do not
show the groups themselves, but the
general outline which they might take
an outlinr somewhat pyramidal. The
size and r"min nee OF these pedestalt
make them ein.iisr to false porches.
Their columns apparently have Ro
man compositp capitals, such as appeal
on the arch, Of Titus at Rome. The
baroness of the inner walls is interrupted
by niches for statues of soldiers ant
sailors. The squandrAs, or three-cor