page_title: Cornerstone
section_title: Ecclesiastical
hierarchical_section_title: Cornerstone / Contemporary usage / Ecclesiastical
caption_attribution_description: Cornerstone, St. Vincent De Paul Church, Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans
context_page_description: The cornerstone is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.
  Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or replica, set in a prominent location on the outside of a building, with an inscription on the stone indicating the construction dates of the building and the names of architect, builder, and other significant individuals. The rite of laying a cornerstone is an important cultural component of eastern architecture and metaphorically in sacred architecture generally.
  Some cornerstones include time capsules from, or engravings commemorating, the time a particular building was built.
context_section_description: A cornerstone (Greek: Άκρογωνιεîς, Latin: Primarii Lapidis) will sometimes be referred to as a "foundation-stone", and is symbolic of Christ, whom the Apostle Paul referred to as the "head of the corner" and is the "Chief Cornerstone of the Church" (Ephesians 2:20). A chief or head cornerstone is placed above two walls to maintain them together and avoid the building to fall apart. Many of the more ancient churches will place relics of the saints, especially martyrs, in the foundation stone.
caption: Cornerstone at St. Vincent De Paul Roman Catholic Church, New Orleans, Louisiana (1866)
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