Evening star., 1923-12-19
CATHEDRAL ARCHES.
Of UNUSUAL DESIGN
Massive Masonry Combines
Strength of Norman, With
Grace of Gothic.

Walls more than six feet thick
constitute one of the interesting
features of the choir, part Of the
great national cathedral now under
construction on Wisconsin avenue,
and for which a campaign for $1O,-
0OO,000 is now under way.
At present only three bays or SUBJ
divisions of the choir are being built,
although when completed the choir
viii have length of five bays, be-
ing fanked by stately columns and
arches.
These three great arches are of
unusual interest" said Philip Hubert
Frohman of Frohman, Robb & Little,
he architects of the cathedral.
of their beauty. the second because
of their strength and unusually mas
sive construction, and the third be-
cause of what they stand for and
symbolic.
Design Is Original.
They are beautiful because Of
their pleasing relation to the height
port them. the ratio of their height
60 their span, and their pleasing
curvature. Their beauty is further
increased by the carefully studied
contours of their holdings, result
ing in a very pleasant sequence Of
lights and shadows.
Here we have neither the bold and
sharp contrasts found In many arches
of the early English period, which were
often elaborately nodded and deeply un-
dercut; neither have we the shallowness.
coarseness of molding nor lack of suffi-
cient depth of shadow so frequently
found in fifteenth century English Gothic
of the perpendicular period. They have
not the bold strength of early French
Gothic, nor the fussiness and triviality
of late French Gothic. They are not a
literal copy of anything to be found in
the past, and yet they are distinctly
reminiscent of the best fourteenth CEN
tury English Gothic. They are simple
and yet subtle and varied. Without be-
ing bold they have an appearance of
massive strength. Theirs is the strength
of dignity and calm reserve, and they
seem to carry their heavy load of
masonry in a quiet and graceful way.
When the scaffolds and centering
are cleared away, the arch rings can
then be seen in all their beauty. In
spite of their graceful Gothic style,
these arches, and the walls they carry,
are quite as thick as those Of many a
Norman cathedral. A consideration Of
this fact brings us to the second reason
for which these arches are unusual
that is, because OF their strength.
Columns Six Feet in Diameter.
I'm this day and generation of steel
framed and reinforced concrete build
ings, where speed and economy of
construction are usually the principal
factors, it is quite unusual to see
walls of such thickness as those of
the cathedral, unless they are a mere
veneer of masonry, built for archi-
tectural effect, to hide the slender
nature of the actual construction and
to give an appearance of monumental
nature. But here are no such hypo-
critical shams or makeshifts. These
walls and the arches and columns
supporting them are of honest and
solid masonry construction. The walls
are six and one-half feet thick and
are of brick, faced with limestone,
while the arches of the same thick
ness are also of limestone. The lime
ter, and when the superstructure is
complete each of these clustered piers
will support a load of approximately
1000, 600 pounds
Every precaution is being taken to
assure the strength and permanence
of this great structure. 1t is Norman
in it's maSsiveness and Gothic in its
scientific structural design and in the
excellence of it's masonry. In looking
at these great arches one sees for the
first time in the United States a piece
of construction which is typical of the
best English medieval cathedral ar
chitecture. Washington Cathedral Is
to be larger than most of the English
cathedralS and quite as permanently
built. There is every reason to believe
that it will stand for centuries as a.
witness to Christ, as have the Gothic
cathedralS of England and Europe.
Symbolizes Church's Strength.
These arches are of interest be-
cause of what they symbolic and
what they stand for. Their perma-
nence, their strength, their honest
construction and their beauty are
symbols of the permanence, strength,
truth and beauty of Christianity.
Their massiveness symboliZes the fact
that the church is indeed founded on
a rock" One cannot look upon them
without feeling that. back of the Gre
alton of such a fabric, lies faith
Such a structure stands as
a veritable fortress against all hy-
pocrisy, and against all those whose
broad, but shallow and compromising
of Christianity do
but weaken the strength of
the church and its power in helping
mankind to live, Christ-like lives.
The graceful ease with which these
pointed arches carry their great load
reminds us of how we can be en-
abled to bear life's heaviest burdens
with cheerfulness and ease If we
will but look upward for guidance and
direction to Him who has said. Come
unto Me all We that labor and are
heavy laden, and I will refresh you.
While these piers and arches are not
copies of any work Of
the past, yet their decidedly English
Gothic style reminds one of the An
gIican derivation of the Episcopal
Church and of the fact of its un-
broken connection with the begin
nings of Christianity through apol-
tolic succession"