Trinity Church and John Hancock Skyscraper in Copley Square
Copley Square in Boston is a historic landmark of Boston,Massachusetts, that remains to be one of the defining features of the city,both due to its historical and architectural significance, but also in partbecause of its unique open-space setup filled with trees, flowers, andgrass. The incredible architecture of Copley Square that spans the styleand history of many decades, combined with the park-like atmosphere of theplant life, is able to transport any visitor to a different state of mind,and it serves as a great escape from the dark alleys and traffic pollutionof Boston. One of the fascinating things about the Copley Square area isthat it was once a tidal marsh unable to support any buildings until theBack Bay was filled. (Wieneke.) Two of the defining landmarks of CopleySquare are the Trinity Church and the John Hancock skyscraper. The original Trinity Church in Boston was was built by John Indicottin the 1700's. (Norton) However, in 1860 the Vestry voted to move thechurch to a new location. In January of 1872, a 24,800 square foot plot ofland was purchased in Boston, having been carefully chosen as the site forthe church, and soon after committee meetings began to review arch
The problems began during construction, when theground collapsed and Trinity Church was actually sucked into a hole in theground. While some people findit to be a beautiful work of art, others are outraged at its awkwardappearance placed along with the beautiful Trinity Church and BostronPublic Library of Copley Square. This was "The Baptism," created by the London firm Clayton andBell. The church issurrounded on all sides by streets, not other buildings which wouldrestrict the view of the church. The building is comprised mainly of Monsongranite and Longmeadow sandstone, and after completion the tower aloneweighed in at 90 million pounds, which is supported by over 4,000 cedarpiles. "Ornamental detail inRichardson's exterior got sacrificed to the sturdy lithic masses, roundarched openings, the mass and void, and the color, texture, and scaletypical of Romanesque concerns. (Skyscraper) The reflective surface is necessary to preventthe building from overheating for most of the year. Imagine how the Vestry from the Trinity Church wouldhave reacted hearing these estimates for a building! (Glass) Trinity Church remains to be a historical wonder of religion andbeauty today, but the John Hancock skyscraper is both aestheticallyunpleasant and structurally unsound. " Perhaps the most famous windows in Trinity Church are those byJohn La Farge, who completed five windows between 1883 and 1902: "ChristBlessing," "The New Jerusalem," "Purity," "Presentation of Mary at theTemple," and "The Resurrection. Inside, it's really nothingspecial, just another office building that takes you too much time to getup or down to the basement cafeteria. It was an insult to the artisticintegrity of Copley Square to include this sky-high monstrosity, its onlyredeeming factor being the intriguing way the building reflects thesurrounding buildings. Richardson, was commissioned to design the church. Oudinot of Paris was commissioned forone window, their rich design more often found in Roman Catholic churches,adding a colorful variation from the style of the other windows.
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Acceptance Essays
