Existing comment:
Department of the Post Office Building
"The Bond of Postal Union" is symbolized by a hemisphere encircled by a broad band supported by two youths, one of whom passes the torch of enlightenment to the other. At either end are half-figure torsos: One of a trion with sporting dolphins, the other of an aviator with an eagle. This limestone pediment on Pennsylvania Avenue is 43 feet wide and 9 feet high. It was carved by the John Donnelly Company in 1933-1934.
Adolph Weinman's preliminary clay sketch model for the pediment, "The Bond of Postal Union," is shown within a plaster architectural model.
The Department of the Post Office Building is viewed from across Twelfth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in the autumn of 1933. Construction of the scaffolding and housing for carving "The Bond of Postal Union" appears in the foreground.
Harry Ellis, one of the carvers for the John Donnelly Company, is seen finishing with hammer and chisel, some details on "The Bond of Postal Union." The raised pointed marks on a center section of the half-scale plaster model have corresponding points on the stone. These are removed in the final stages of carving. |