Part 1

THE BROCHURE SERIES OF ARCHITECTURAL ILLUSTRATION. 1900

LIST OF TEXT ILLUSTRATIONS.

CARVING.

Carved Arm-piece of Choir Stall, Sixteenth Century, Cathedral of Genoa 123

Carved Choir Stall, Modern (1856) Baptistery, Pisa, 131

Carving, Detail of, Twelfth Century, Church of S. Ginsto, Lucca 127

CATHEDRALS OF ENGLAND, THE.

Canterbury Cathedral: The Choir 185

Chichester Cathedral from Northeast 183

Hereford Cathedral from Northeast 187

Lincoln Cathedral: The Choir 193

Norwich Cathedral from East 185

Peterborough Cathedral: The Choir 189

St. Albans Abbey from Southwest 199

Wells Cathedral: The Choir 197

Wells Cathedral: West Front 195

Winchester Cathedral: West Front 193

Worcester Cathedral: The Choir 191

Worcester Cathedral from Southwest 181

CHATEAU OF CHAMBORD, THE.

Lantern of the Great Staircase 151

Plan 155

View of Chambord (1576) 157

CHIPPENDALE CHAIRS.

Chippendale Chairs, Chinese Pattern 77

Chippendale Chairs 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, 83

DUCAL PALACE: VENICE, ITALY.

Ceiling, Detail of, Ante-Chamber of Chapel 139

Fireplace in Doge's Bed-chamber 141

Piazetta and Sea Façades 137

DUOMO AND THE CAMPANILE, THE. FLORENCE, ITALY.

Plan 93

Window, The Campanile 91

ENGLISH CARVED FIREPLACES.

Mantelpiece, Montacute House 63

Mantelpiece, Restoration House, Rochester 59

Mantelpiece, Standish Hall 61

Mantelpiece, Stokesay Castle 65

Mantelpiece, Wraxhall Manor 67

GROTESQUES FROM NOTRE DAME, PARIS. 95, 97, 99

GUILD HALLS OF LONDON, THE.

Butcher's Hall, Board Room 121

HOUSE OF JACQUES COEUR: BOURGES, FRANCE.

Bird'seye View (After Viollet-le-Duc) 105

JAPANESE GARDENS.

Fukagawa, Detail of Garden 27

Hill Garden, Model of 35

Lanterns, Garden, Typical Varieties of 31

Merchant's Villa Garden, Detail, Fukagawa 29

Model Pine Tree 25

Stepping Stones, Arrangement of 31, 33

Tea Garden, Inner Enclosure, Tamagawa 33

LOUIS XVI. SCONCES.

Douai 161

Fontainebleau 161, 163

Versailles 161, 163

PETIT TRIANON, VERSAILLES.

Temple of Love 57

SPANISH WROUGHT-IRON SCREENS.

Chapel Screen, Seville Cathedral 41

Pulpit, Avila Cathedral 47

Screen, Louvre 47

Screen, Zaporta Chapel, Church of La Seo, Saragossa 45

SPECIMENS OF GOTHIC WOOD CARVING.

Gothic Carved Woodwork of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries, Bavarian National Museum, Munich 111, 113, 115

Gothic Carved Woodwork of Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries, Germanic Museum, Nuremberg 109

TEN MOST BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS IN THE UNITED STATES.

City Hall, New York City 19

Congressional Library, Approach, Washington 11

Madison Square Garden, New York City 13, 15

Madison Square Garden, New York City (Detail) 15

National Capitol, Washington 3, 5

Public Library, Boston, Entrance 7

St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York City 17

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Façade, New York City 17

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Interior, New York City 19

Trinity Church, Boston 7

Trinity Church, New Porch, Boston 9

Trinity Church, Tower, Boston 9

TWELFTH CENTURY CAPITALS FROM THE BENEDICTINE MONASTERY, MONREALE, SICILY.

Capitals from Monreale 49, 51

TYPES OF ITALIAN GARDEN FOUNTAINS.

Fountain by Bernini, Villa Borghes 145

Fountain, Garden of Vatican, Rome 147

Fountain, Villa Andobrandini, Frascati 147

Fountain, Villa Medici, Rome 145

WORK OF SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN.

Greenwich Hospital from the River 173

Hampton Court Palace, Fountain Court 179

Kensington Palace, Entrance 173

Monument, The, London 171

St. Bride's Church Steeple: London 175

St. Dunstan's-in-the-East Steeple: London 175

St. Stephen's Walbrook Steeple: London 177

Trinity College Library: Cambridge, England 169

LIST OF SUBJECTS.

Bourges: House of Jacques Coeur 103

Campanile, The: Florence, Italy 87

Capitals, Twelfth Century: Benedictine, Monastery, Monreale, Sicily 49

Carved Fireplaces, English 65

Carving, Specimens of Gothic Wood 115

Cathedrals of England, The (See List of Plates) 183

Chairs, English, Chippendale 71

Chambord, Chateau of: France 151

Chateau of Chambord: France (See List of Plates) 151

Chippendale Chairs (See List of Plates) 71

Coeur, Jacques, House of: Bourges, France 103

Competitions, Brochure Series.

Competition O (Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the United States) 3

Competition P (Photographs for Brochure Series) 131, 143

Ducal Palace, The: Venice, Italy (See List of Plates) 135

Duomo and the Campanile, The: Florence, Italy (See List of Plates) 87

English Carved Fireplaces 65

English Cathedrals 183

English Chippendale Chairs 71

England, Guild Halls of London 119

Florence, Italy, The Duomo and the Campanile 87

Fountains, Italian Garden 145, 147

France, The Chateau of Chambord 151

France, House of Jacques Coeur: Bourges 103

France, Petit Trianon: Versailles 55

Gardens, Italian Fountain 145, 147

Gardens, Japanese 23

Gothic Wood Carving, Specimens of 115

Grotesques from Notre Dame, Paris 95

Guild Halls of London, England, The (See List of Plates) 119

Hamlin, Professor A. D. F. (Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the United States) 5

House of Jacques Coeur: Bourges, France (See List of Plates) 103

Italian Garden Fountains 145, 147

Italy, The Campanile: Florence 87

Italy, The Ducal Palace: Venice 135

Italy, The Duomo and the Campanile: Florence 87

Japanese Gardens (See List of Plates) 23

London, The Guild Halls of 119

Louis XVI. Sconces 161

Monreale, Sicily, Twelfth Century Capitals from the Benedictine Monastery 49

Notre Dame, Paris, Grotesques from 95

Paris: Grotesques from Notre Dame 95

Petit Trianon, The: Versailles (See List of Plates) 35

Sconces, Louis XVI 161

Screens, Spanish Wrought-Iron 39

Sir Christopher Wren, Work of 167

Spanish Wrought-Iron Screens (See List of Plates) 39

Specimens of Gothic Wood Carving 115

Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the United States, The A discussion by Prof. A. D. F. Hamlin 5

Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the United States, The (See List of Plates) 3

Twelfth Century Capitals from the Benedictine Monastery, Monreale, Sicily 49

Types of Italian Garden Fountains 145, 147

United States, Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the 3

Venice, Italy, The Ducal Palace 135

Versailles, France: The Petit Trianon 55

Wood Carving, Gothic 115

Work of Sir Christopher Wren (See List of Plates) 167

Wren, Sir Christopher, Work of 167

Wrought-Iron Screens, Spanish 39

THE BROCHURE SERIES OF ARCHITECTURAL ILLUSTRATION.

1900. JANUARY No. 1.

THE TEN MOST BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS IN THE UNITED STATES.

During the Autumn of the past year a voting contest was proposed to the readers of THE BROCHURE SERIES with the object of determining by the consensus of votes, which, in their opinion, were the Ten Most Beautiful Buildings now existing in the United States. The only condition imposed was that no reader should enter more than one list. A lively interest was taken in the contest, and over two hundred votes were received,--the voters being almost entirely either architects or professed students of architecture.

The following ten buildings, named in the order of preference, are those which received the greatest number of votes in this contest; and the appended percentages show approximately what proportion of the total number of votes each received:--

I. NATIONAL CAPITOL, WASHINGTON. Hallet, Thornton, Hadfield, Hoban, Latrobe, Bulfinch, Walter and Clark, Architects. About 99%.

II. BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, BOSTON. McKim, Mead & White, Architects. About 97%.

III. TRINITY CHURCH, BOSTON. Gambrel & Richardson, Architects. About 96%.

IV. CONGRESSIONAL LIBRARY, WASHINGTON. Smithmeyer, Peltz and Edward P. Casey, Architects. About 75%.

V. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, NEW YORK CITY. McKim, Mead & White, Architects. About 70%.

VI. TRINITY CHURCH, NEW YORK CITY. Richard Upjohn, Architect. About 55%.

VII. MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NEW YORK CITY. McKim, Mead & White, Architects. About 45%.

VIII. ST. PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL, NEW YORK CITY. James Renwick, Architect. About 35%.

IX. "BILTMORE HOUSE," BILTMORE, N.C. R. M. Hunt, Architect. About 29%.

X. CITY HALL, NEW YORK CITY. Mangin and Macomb, Architects. About 29%.

In the article which follows, Prof. A. D. F. Hamlin comments upon the above list, and draws some interesting conclusions from the comparison of it with a similar list, compiled fifteen years ago in the same way by the readers of _The American Architect_. The announcement of the award of the prizes in this Competition will be found on the publishers' page of this issue.

"THE TEN MOST BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS."

A DISCUSSION OF THE VOTE BY A. D. F. HAMLIN, PROFESSOR OF ARCHITECTURE, CORNELL UNIVERSITY; AUTHOR OF "HAMLIN'S HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE."

A final and absolute verdict upon the relative merits of works of art is in most cases an impossibility. Since there is no such thing as an absolute objective standard of comparison for all works of a given class, the personal equation and the time equation must always enter largely into critical estimates by individuals or groups of individuals. Least of all are we likely to pass correct judgments on contemporary works, because we measure them wholly or mainly by the dominant taste or fashion of our time, instead of by that larger experience and more impartial judgment which comes with the lapse of decades and centuries. When, however, a large number of intelligent and presumably competent critics are found in agreement as to the merits or defects of a given work, it is safe to conclude that there is some ground for the verdict; and when the agreement extends to a number of buildings (in the verdict about to be discussed we are dealing with buildings) it is reasonable to draw definite inferences as to the grounds of the agreement, both in relation to the works so judged and in relation to the view-point and taste of those who have pronounced the opinion.

Of course in such a vote as that by THE BROCHURE readers on the "Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the United States," the result can only be a composite,--a consensus reached by the fusing together and averaging of a great number of widely diverse estimates. The very terms of the vote will be variously interpreted according as the expression "the most beautiful building" is made to apply to the exterior alone, or to the plan, the decorative detail, the scale, or other elements of architectural design, or to include all; and according to the varying values assigned to dignity, simplicity, richness, grandeur, refinement, and other qualities, by the several voters. But, having made all these allowances, there is much instruction and suggestion in the vote, both as to the tendencies of taste among the constituency of THE BROCHURE SERIES, and as to the progress and tendencies of American architecture, especially in the light of the vote of 1885 in _The American Architect_.

As a preface to the comments about to be made on these tendencies, it is in order to present a few statistics with regard to the vote and the buildings voted on. In these I shall call the BROCHURE'S list of the ten buildings receiving the highest number of votes the "First" list; the supplementary list of the ten coming next in popularity, the "Second" list, and that published in _The American Architect_ in 1885, the "1885" list. (The "Second" and the "1885" lists are printed on page 17.)

A comparison of the styles represented in these three lists is interesting, after making all allowances for doubtful classifications of some of the examples.

I. (_a_) RENAISSANCE GROUP:

"FIRST." "SECOND." "1885." Classic 2 1 1 French 3 2 1 Italian 2 2 0 Spanish 0 1 0 Modern American 0 1 0

(_b_) MEDIÆVAL GROUP:

Romanesque 1 2 5 Gothic 2 1 3 -- -- -- 10 10 10

The percentages of the total number of votes won by buildings in the different styles in the "First" list were as follows:

Classic 16.9 French 15.6 Italian 12.0 Romanesque 9.6 Gothic 9.0 ---- 63.1

These percentages are only approximate, and the apportionment would vary with a different classification; but they show, in a rough way, that the ten buildings ranking highest received about 63 per cent of all the votes, and that the seven in the Renaissance group obtained 44.5 per cent of all the votes.

Comparing next the classes of buildings represented, we have this result:

"FIRST." "SECOND." "1885." II. Government Buildings, 2 3 6 Churches 3 0 2 Libraries 3 0 0 Museums 0 2 0 Club Houses 0 2 0 Hotels 0 1 0 Private Houses 1 1 1 Amusement Buildings 1 0 0 Commercial Buildings 0 1 0 Educational 0 0 1 -- -- -- 10 10 10

Comparing the geographical distribution, we have:

"FIRST." "SECOND." "1885." III. New York City 5 4 3 Washington 2 1 1 Boston 2 0 1 Biltmore, N.C. 1 0 0 Chicago 0 1 0 Albany 0 1 2 St. Augustine 0 1 0 Pittsburgh 0 1 0 Hartford 0 1 1 Cambridge 0 0 1 North Easton 0 0 1 -- -- -- 10 10 10

Of the ten buildings in the "1885" list but three appear in the "First" list, and two in the "Second"; so that only five of the ten buildings adjudged in 1885 to be the most beautiful in the United States are included in the _twenty_ given the leading rank in 1899 by the BROCHURE readers. Of these twenty, six in the "First" list and five in the "Second" have been built since the 1885 vote. Of the remaining four in the "First" list, three, as we have seen, figure in that of "1885"; the fourth--the New York City Hall--was not in 1885 considered worthy of a place among the ten--a significant suggestion as to changing tastes since that date.

The first and most obvious conclusion to be drawn from the above statistics is that American architects, so far as they are represented in the BROCHURE vote, have no hide-bound traditions or ingrained prejudices as to style. There is in the list selected by them a preponderance, it is true, of buildings in the various styles of the Renaissance and Classic Revival--seven out of ten. But the third in the list, with 96 per cent of unanimity in its favor, is a Romanesque building, Trinity Church, Boston. Two others, standing sixth and eighth, are Gothic,--Trinity and St. Patrick's Churches in New York. The remaining seven, although they may all be included under a broad extension of the term "Renaissance," exhibit wide divergencies of style. The Capitol at Washington and the Columbia Library represent two different phases of the Classic Revival, nearly a century apart in date; the New York City Hall, a version of the style of Louis XVI. The Boston Public Library was avowedly inspired from the "nèo-Grec" Bibliothèque St. Genéviève of Labrouste, as far as its façades are concerned, and yet differs from that building more than it resembles it; and although, in the foregoing tables, both this and the Biltmore mansion are classified as in the French Renaissance style, they are really much farther apart than the classic Capitol and the Louis Seize City Hall. The Congressional Library follows Italian rather than French precedents, and the Madison Square Garden suggests both Italian and Spanish prototypes. Evidently our architects are not bound by allegiance to any one style or kind of beauty, but are ready to find subjects for admiration in buildings of the most diverse character, and to recognize beauty alike in pointed and round arches, in domes and in spires, in acanthus leaves and crockets, in new buildings and in old. This catholicity of taste is interesting, and on the whole hopeful, for it suggests the ability and readiness to appreciate realities instead of names, style rather than any particular historic dress, essentials rather than externals;--an eclecticism which recognizes beauty, quality, excellence, wherever they can be found, and adopts what is best without regard to names or categories. And if we consider the buildings themselves, instead of the motives of the voters, the same statistics indicate, as we might expect, a like catholicity of taste in the designs of recent American buildings, and--what is more to the point--a conspicuous measure of success in fusing together and adapting to modern American needs the multifarious suggestions of the "historic styles," so that the results are neither copies nor patchwork, but consistent, intelligent and harmonious units.

Taking next the second comparative table, we find that in the "First" and "Second" lists taken together, 20 per cent of the names are those of government or administrative buildings; 15 per cent are churches, with the same number of libraries (three of each, all on the "First" list). There are two each of museums, club houses and private residences; and one each of office buildings, hotels, and amusement houses. Here again we encounter the same breadth of judgment as in the first comparison. The BROCHURE readers, and presumably our architects generally, are willing to discover beauty alike in public, private, religious, and commercial architecture.