by Brandon McGrath-Neely, Library Assistant
This is Part Three of a three-part series on architecture at the MHS. You can find Part One here and Part Two here.
As you approach 1154 Boylston Street today, 你会发现马萨诸塞州历史学会(Massachusetts Historical Society)正好夹在两边大小相似的建筑之间. Its strong, 石头的外观与周围街道上的伯克利音乐学院建筑融为一体. But if you had arrived just after the building’s completion in 1899, you would see the MHS standing out from the fewer, smaller buildings around it.
Designed by Edmund March Wheelwright, 建筑结构强调力量和规模，是格鲁吉亚复兴运动的典范. 快速游览一下MHS的外观，突出了这些建筑元素, 在整个波士顿和美国的建筑上都能找到这种图案吗.
建筑在视觉上分为三个部分:一楼, the upper floors, and the roof. 一楼的特点是其立面的大型石头建筑. 这种形式的砖石，常见于格鲁吉亚和格鲁吉亚复兴的建筑，被称为 ashlar, meaning large, precisely cut stone blocks. Ashlar砌体强调其外观的强度和简单性，并使人想起古典文明的纪念性石头寺庙.
The upper floors adopt more modern stylings, 从古典到当代(当时)的过渡在格鲁吉亚复兴时期的建筑中很常见. The stone ashlar masonry transitions to brick masonry, 建筑的高度由白色凹槽壁柱突出(我们在本系列的第二部分中了解到)。. Above the windows, flat arches provide structural support, but some of the arch components—known as voussoirs—alternate in size, drawing attention to the windows by breaking the repetitive, consistent placement of the bricks beside and below. 白色的平拱门也与周围的红砖形成了视觉对比. The use of bricks and flat arches recalls the Federal Style, 这是共和早期的美国建筑运动，著名的建筑是 Massachusetts State House.
格鲁吉亚时期不仅借鉴了古典建筑(使用ashlar)和联邦建筑(使用对称的砖外墙)，而且很大程度上借鉴了文艺复兴时期的建筑, as seen in the balconettes, sometimes called Juliet balconies. 这些特征太小，实际上不能作为阳台，但有助于使外部看起来更精致. Balconettes have existed since the earliest architectural movements, 但真正利用阳台的是意大利文艺复兴时期, decorative flourishes. Though earlier periods used stone or wood balconettes, 格鲁吉亚复兴时期在引入锻铁或金属阳台方面是独一无二的, like those seen on the MHS.
建筑西立面的三层窗户同样来自意大利文艺复兴时期. The Italian architect Andrea Palladio, one of the most influential Renaissance architects, 推广了一种视觉组织风格，其中一个大元素(在他的例子中), 一个拱形的开口两侧各有两个薄元素(在他的例子中), two columns). This “Palladian style” was quickly adopted throughout Europe and later, the Americas. 既然您已经了解了帕拉第奥风格的特征，那么您将开始看到它们无处不在. MHS一楼的窗户有点像帕拉第亚风格(一个大的中央窗户两侧是两个较窄的窗户), 但西侧三层楼的窗户更具帕拉第亚风格, with a fanlight (or half-circle window, also known as a lunette) spanning over all three sections and recalling Palladio’s arches.[1]这些窗户体现了整个建筑外观的设计理念:干净和简单的对称.
建筑的最后一部分也受到了帕拉迪奥的启发:MHS拥有一个平坦的屋顶, bordered by a balustrade—a broad, low railing made of molded and flat features. [2]在文艺复兴时期，栏杆作为一种装饰特征得到普及，并成为联邦和格鲁吉亚风格的重要特征. Flat roofs were used by American founders and recalled the palaces of Renaissance Italy. (看看它与隔壁波士顿音乐学院(Boston Conservatory)的倾斜屋顶形成了怎样的对比!) Wheelwright再次使用建筑与理想化的过去和简单但强烈的视觉识别利记手机官网起来.
As with Ellis Hall, 在整个马萨诸塞州历史学会的外观上，人们可以考虑更多的建筑选择:带有斜纹的入口通道完全可以成为一篇博客文章的主题. Now that you’ve read the article, 下次你做研究的时候，停下来仔细看看我们的大楼. If you’re not in the area, take a trip on Google Maps! 想想Wheelwright是如何在他的设计中强调强度和精确性的, 以及这些选择如何创造一种历史永恒和准确的氛围.
When the building opened in 1899, the Boston Herald remarked, “这个地方将成为这座城市最可靠的历史知识宝库之一.” [3] Three years later, Charles F. MHS的主席亚当斯评论说，这座建筑的美丽在于它的“严格的简单”.” [4] Today, 它与其他华丽的建筑相邻，风格和设计都有自己的选择. 1154 Boylston Street simultaneously represents a number of Georgian Revival buildings in and around Boston 然而，在这座充满建筑运动和时期的城市中，它却从其他风格中脱颖而出. Despite all that has changed on Boylston Street, in Fenway, and in Boston, 我认为MHS大楼仍然是一个突出的设计标志，它是过去如何影响现在的, and how the present is always reinterpreting the past.
[1] The third-floor window on the northern façade of the building, visible in the first image, is even more Palladian! Quintessential Palladian windows, such as the one installed by George Washington at Mt. Vernon在一扇巨大的拱形窗户的两侧各有两扇窄窗. Palladian windows are sometimes called Venetian windows.
[2] Below the balustrade, 该建筑的飞檐有一个在第二部分中描述过的独特特征. Can you find it?
[3] Boston Herald, March 9, 1899. As cited in Tucker, Louis Leonard. 1995. 马萨诸塞州历史学会:二百周年历史，1791-1991. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 226.
[4] Charles F. Adams to Edmund M. Wheelwright, June 6, 1902. As cited in Tucker, 224.