The New York herald., 1921-08-07
ALL SOCIETY TYPES
CARVED in STONE ON
ST. THOMASS DOOR
Architect Says the Chappie
and the Naughty DoWager
Are Cut i'm Frieze.
FIFTH AVE. CARTOONS
L. Donald Robb Explains
the Dollar Mark Over
Bridal Door.
FOLLOWS OLD CUSTOM
Practice Of Ancients to Depict
Life of the Time in Church
Carvings.
FIFTH AVE. CARTOONS
FOLLOWS OLD CUSTOM

Special Despatch TO THE NEW YoRK HERALD.
BosToN, Aug. 6.-"In the frieze over
the main door of st. Thomas's Church
in New York you win discover some
figures which are taken from the exact
life of Fifth avenue as 1t is to-day
There you will find carved the chappie
with the vapid countenance, the
naughty dowager, the affected monocle
wearer and the rich, proud matron.
On the other hand the opposed types
are there as well-men and women
with faces or character, true and bal
anced types of men and women"
1t was thus that E. Donald Robb of
the now dissolved firm of Cram, Good
hue Ferguson, the architects who de-
signed st. Thomas's Church. explained
tonight how 1t occurs that over the
brides entrance, as It is called, of the
fashionable New York church there
can be traced in the stone carvings the
figures of dollar sign and lovers
knot.
Il drew the design which Is over the
brides entrance" said Mr.. Robb, with
the notion of conveying something SYM
bolic of marriage and particularly of
what modern Fifth avenue marriage
has so often been. The dollar mark,
symbol of riches. tells the story of the
loveless marriage, and on the other side
nearly all day, is the lovers knot, the
which should be made in heaven.
I'm the Middle Ages, when illiteracy
was the rule. the meaning OF life was
conveyed to laymen through various
symbols and portraitures in church
architecture. To-day the tradition ID
dannEpnniAas yipaxhnrchea which follow tha
style ~ hzedisevaf ones. as st. Thomas's g
does. ana IL we have used old symbols
for virtues and vices In our designs
why should 1t not be correct to use
modern ones for those who wish to
pause and reflect?
There Is not line put into st.
Thomas's church that does not carry
its meaning. its lesson, a lesson equal
to that carried by the symbolic pictures
in old age architecture.
There we're twelve virtues and vices
in old age architecture; twenty-four
symbols for the twelve virtues and the
twelve vices. Everywhere one finds
them in the most beautiful paintings
and in sculpture. The virtues and vices
which were pictured opposed were pa
tience and anger, humility and pride.
chastity and lust, temperance and lux
ury, concord and discord. charity and
avarfce, fortitude and cowardice, pru-
dence and folly. faith and idolatry. hope
and despair. gentleness and harshness,
perseverance and Inconsistency. and obe-
dience and rebellion.
"And thus for ten years have brides
arrived and departed through the door
that Is marked with the modern symbol
for marriage without love-and none
but those Of the inner circle know of
the sign on the door"
None of the figures described by Mr..
Robb were discernible In a tour of the
exterior of the church made last night
Just before the sun set upon art study.
Dr. Ernest NJ. Stires. rector of the
church. is out OF the city. and as the
church sexton also was absent an In
spection of the inside OF the church was
not possible. The only person about the
building. a night watchman. said that
the church would be locked until morn
ing