Existing comment:
Designing the Courthouse:
"Congress has at last provided and the genius of a great architect has planned a permanent home for the Court that in beauty and in dignity is fully worthy of the institution it is designed to house and worthy, too, of the architectural company it keeps."
-- John W. Davis at the cornerstone ceremony, October 1932
Cass Gilbert's design for the Supreme Court Building centers on a classically inspired Greco-Roman temple. A grand staircase, flanked by allegorical statues, leads to a Corinthian portico with a triangular pediment. The prominence of the ceremonial temple over the administration wings signifies their relative importance to the functions of the Court. Gilbert's use of white marble and classical architectural elements links his design to a long line of buildings dating from antiquity to those on Capitol Hill. In this way, he shows that the building, like the law it serves, is built upon precedent. Using a Beaux-Arts approach, Gilbert drew from these sources for inspiration to create a powerful, symbolic home for the Supreme Court of the United States. |