The Washington Square Arch, officially the Washington Arch, is a

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

memorial arch in Washington Square Park, in the

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village, or simply the Village, is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to the north, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the s ...

neighborhood of

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...

, New York City. Designed by architect Stanford White in 1891, it commemorates the centennial of George Washington's 1789 inauguration as President of the United States, and forms the southern terminus of

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...

Description

Washington Arch, constructed of white Tuckahoe marble, was conceived by Stanford White, who adapted the form of a Roman

triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...

, with a design close to the 1st-century

Arch of Titus The Arch of Titus (; ) is a 1st-century AD honorific arch, located on the Via Sacra, Rome, just to the south-east of the Roman Forum. It was constructed in 81 AD by Emperor Domitian shortly after the death of his older brother Titus to comm ...

in Rome. They were monuments which the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

and later emperors built throughout the empire to celebrate a victory or event. For example, the flying figures in the

spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...

s on either side of the arch are winged victories. The monument's total height is 77 feet (23 m). The piers stand apart and the

arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...

opening is high. The

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

of the Arch centers on images of war and peace. On the

frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

are 13 large stars and 42 small stars, interspersed with capital "W"s. The inscription on the attic story reads: The north side of the eastern pier bears the

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

''George Washington as Commander-in-Chief, Accompanied by Fame and Valor'' (1914–1916) by Hermon A. MacNeil; the President is flanked by Fame (left) and Valor (right). The western pier has ''George Washington as President, Accompanied by Wisdom and Justice'' (1917–18) by

Alexander Stirling Calder Alexander Stirling Calder (January 11, 1870 – January 7, 1945) was an American sculpture, sculptor and teacher. He was the son of sculptor Alexander Milne Calder and the father of sculptor Alexander Calder, Alexander (Sandy) Calder. His best-kn ...

(father of Alexander Calder), with flanking

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

(right) and

Wisdom Wisdom, also known as sapience, is the ability to apply knowledge, experience, and good judgment to navigate life’s complexities. It is often associated with insight, discernment, and ethics in decision-making. Throughout history, wisdom ha ...

(left) figures. In the latter sculpture, a hand holds a book bearing the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

phrase ''Exitus Acta Probat'' ("the end justifies the deed"). These sculptures are commonly referred to as ''Washington at War'' and ''Washington at Peace'', respectively. These figures and most of the rest of the carving on the arch was performed by the Piccirilli Brothers. Upon the last stone is carved a huge "P" in honor of Ignacy Jan Paderewski, the famous Polish pianist and 3rd Prime Minister of Poland, who donated $4,500 collected from one of his concerts in New York.

History

In 1889, a large plaster and wood memorial arch was erected over Fifth Avenue just north of Washington Square Park by local businessman and philanthropist William Rhinelander Stewart (1852–1929). Stewart lived at 17 Washington Square North, and his friends contributed $2,765 toward the work. Freemasons from St. John's Lodge No. 1 lead a procession through the arch with the George Washington Inaugural Bible for the Centennial Parade of Washington's Inauguration in 1889. The temporary arch was so popular that more money was raised and, three years later, the permanent stone arch, designed by architect Stanford White, was erected. During the excavations for the eastern pier, human remains, a coffin, and a gravestone dated 1803 were uncovered below ground level. At the laying of the cornerstone, Freemasons from St. John's Lodge No. 1 were again present with the George Washington Inaugural Bible. The Arch was dedicated in 1895. In 1918, two statues of Washington were added to the north side. By the late 20th century, the Washington Arch had become extensively defaced with spray-painted graffiti. It was cleaned and restored in 2003–04. In modern times, the Washington Square Arch has become an unofficial symbol of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

Gallery

File:2015 Washington Square Arch from northwest.jpg, The north face of the Washington Square Arch File:20140526-WashingtonArch_SouthFace_Night.jpg, South face of the Washington Arch at night File:Washington in War MacNeil.jpg, ''George Washington as Commander-in-Chief'' (1914–1916) by Hermon A. MacNeil File:Washington in Peace Calder.jpg, ''George Washington as President'' (1917–1918) by

References

External links

Guide to the Records of the Washington Arch, 1872–1925
{{Portal bar, Architecture, New York City 1892 establishments in New York City Buildings and structures completed in 1892 Fifth Avenue George Washington in art Greenwich Village Latin inscriptions Monuments and memorials in Manhattan Monuments and memorials to George Washington in the United States New York (state) historical anniversaries Sculptures by the Piccirilli Brothers Terminating vistas in the United States Tourist attractions in Manhattan Triumphal arches in the United States Vandalized works of art in New York City Sculptures of books

Description

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links