is Dedicated ‖ to the Glory of God ‖ and ‖ in Loving Memory
of ‖ Annie Allen Wallace ‖ February 14, 1853-August 25,
1890.”[28]
=The Seven Angels with Trumpets= (Rev. viii. 2) are the main subject of
the window above the _Chapel of St. Columba_. Three of them are in the
lower part of the middle light and two in each of the side lights. In
the upper part of the middle light is the mighty angel of the cloud,
overarched by the rainbow, standing upon the sea, and holding aloft in
his left hand the little open book (x. 1, 2). In the upper part of the
left side light is the angel with the seal of the living God (vii. 2) and
in the right side light the angel with the golden censer (viii. 3). In
the middle of the side lights are four angels (two left and two right)
blowing the four winds of the earth (vii. 1). In the circular light at
the top are the name “Pergamos” and a shield bearing the sharp two-edged
sword of Him who sent the message to the church in Pergamos (ii. 12)
between the Greek letters ΙΗϹ and ΧΡϹ (Jesus Christ.)[29] In the bottom
border are the words: “From the seven ‖ Spirits which are before ‖ His
throne.” A tablet in the Ambulatory reads as follows:
“The Clerestory Window Above the ‖ Chapel of Saint Columba‖
is Erected ‖ to the Glory of God ‖ and ‖ in Loving Memory ‖
of ‖ 1797 John Williams Leeds 1873 ‖ 1800 Eliza Leeds 1885 ‖
Emily Irene Hardenbergh 1899 ‖ By Their Daughter and Sister ‖
Josephine Eliza Leeds ‖A. D. 1915.”
=Christ Reigning in Glory=, as described in the first chapter of the
Book of Revelation, is the principal subject of the great central window
above the _Chapel of St. Saviour_. In the central light is the Son of
Man, with up-raised hands, vested as King and Priest, wearing a royal
crown, a crimson mantle and a golden pallium. He stands in the midst of
the seven candlesticks (i. 13), holds in his right hand the seven stars
(i. 16, 20), and is surrounded by winged seraphim. Beneath him a rainbow
(iv. 3) over-arches the sea of glass (iv. 6). In the side lights are the
four principal archangels: St. Michael (left, above,) is depicted in
armor as the Prince of the Celestial Armies, while the balance in his
left hand, supposed to contain the souls of the dead, symbolizes his
character as Guardian Angel of Departed Spirits. St. Raphael, below him,
with pilgrim’s staff, is represented as the friendly traveller, recalling
Milton’s “affable archangel.” St. Gabriel (right, above,) appears as
Angel of the Annunciation, as indicated by the lilies (symbol of purity)
in his right hand; and below him is St. Uriel, as Angel of Light, holding
the sun.[30] In the circular window at the top are two angels holding the
morning star mentioned in the message to the church in Thyatira (ii. 28),
but the name “Thyatira” is lacking. In the border at the bottom of the
three lights are the words: “Jesus Christ ‖ the Faithful ‖ Witness.”
The window was given by Mrs. Whitelaw Reid. A tablet in the Ambulatory
reads:
“The East Window ‖ is Erected in Memory of ‖ Whitelaw Reid ‖
October 27, 1837-December 15, 1912.”
=The Seven Last Plagues= (Rev. xv. 1) are the principal subject of the
window above the entrance to the _Chapel of St. Martin of Tours_. These
are represented in the lower part of the window by seven angels holding
the seven vials containing the plagues, three in the central light and
two in each of the side lights. In the upper part of the middle light
is an angel holding aloft in his right hand the everlasting Gospel
(xiv. 6) in the form of a scroll bearing (obscurely) the symbols of
the four Evangelists. In the upper part of the left side light is the
angel with the measuring rod (xi. 1), and in the right side light is the
angel standing in the sun (not to be confused with the woman in the sun
mentioned in the next window,) calling the fowls of the air to the supper
of the great God (xix. 17). In the circular light at the top are the name
“Sardis” and a shield bearing a white dove in the midst of the seven
stars (the seven Spirits of God,) mentioned in the message to the church
in Sardis (iii. 1). In the border at the bottom of the three lights
are the words: “The First ‖ Begotten of ‖ the Dead.” A tablet in the
Ambulatory reads:
“The Clerestory Window Above ‖ the Chapel of St. Martin of
Tours ‖ is Erected to the Glory of God ‖ and in Loving
Memory of ‖ Sophia R. C. Furniss ‖ and ‖ Mary B. Hubber ‖
by ‖ Margaret E. Zimmerman ‖ nee Furniss ‖ Blessed are the
peace-makers for they ‖ shall be called the children of God.”
=The Woman in the Sun= is the title of the window above the entrance to
the _Chapel of St. Ambrose_. In the central light is the woman clothed
with the sun and wearing the crown of twelve stars (Rev. xii. 1). She is
surrounded by a dazzling radiance of flaming rays. Above her, a cloud
of glory is carrying her Child up to the throne of God (xii. 5). In
the left side light, above, is the angel proclaiming the fall of Babylon
(xiv. 8), and below, symbolizing that wicked city, the woman in scarlet
holding the golden cup of abominations and seated on the beast from the
bottomless pit (xvii. 4, 18). In the right side light, above, is the
angel with the sharp sickle and the clusters of the vine (xiv. 18),
and below, the angel with the keys to the bottomless pit and the chain
to bind the dragon (xx. 1). The whole window symbolizes the triumph of
Christ over the forces of evil. In the circular light at the top are the
name “Philadelphia” and a shield upon which, between six D’s, is the key
of David mentioned in the message to the church in Philadelphia (iii. 7).
In the border at the bottom are the words: “The Prince ‖ of the Kings of
‖ the Earth.” A tablet in the Ambulatory is inscribed:
“The Clerestory Window Above ‖ the Chapel of Saint Ambrose ‖
is Erected to ‖ the Glory of God ‖ and in Loving Memory of
‖ Morgan Lewis Livingston ‖ 1800-1869 ‖ and ‖ Catharine
Manning Livingston ‖ 1810-1886 ‖ By Their Daughter ‖ Julia
Livingston ‖ 1916.”
=The Heavenly City= is the principal subject of the window above the
entrance to the _Chapel of St. James_. In the lower part of the middle
light is the angel showing to St. John the Heavenly City (Rev. xxi. 10 et
seq.) and in the upper part is a glorified figure symbolizing the holy
city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven prepared as a
bride adorned for her husband (xxi. 2). Beneath this figure in the upper
part is the pure river of water of life, and on either side of it is the
tree of life whose leaves are for the healing of the nations (xxii. 1-2).
In the lower part of the left-hand light is the angel with the Alpha, and
in the corresponding part of the right-hand light is the angel with the
Omega (xxii. 13); while above each of them is a beckoning angel saying
“Come” (xxii. 17). In the circular light at the top are the name of the
church of Laodicea and the word “Amen”—the latter being the name of the
sender of the message to the Laodiceans (iii. 14) and the word with which
the Book of Revelation and the Bible end (xxii. 21). In the bottom border
of the three lights is the inscription: “To Him be Glory ‖ and Dominion
for ‖ Ever and Ever.” The window was given in memory of Mary C. and Dr.
John D. Ogden by their children Francis L. Ogden, Margaret Ogden, Mrs.
Gardiner Sherman and Mrs. Francis C. McNutt.
The Ambulatory
The Ambulatory (12-12-12) is a passage about 20 feet wide leading
entirely around the Choir and giving access to the seven Chapels of
Tongues, the Sacristy, and other environments of the Choir. Some of the
features have already been described. The symbolism of the earthly life
in the pavement, before mentioned (p. 51), is noticeable in the large
areas of clay-red tiles with borders of grassy green serpentine and green
marble from Pennsylvania. The beautifully colored wainscoting between
the great pillars is of Grecian marble from the island of Scyrus. The
Ambulatory is entered through elaborately wrought steel gateways, 30 feet
high, in the archways on either side of the great arch of the Choir. The
gates, made by Messrs. Warren & Wetmore, were presented by the Cathedral
League and the Diocesan Auxiliary. In the south Ambulatory gateway is
a white marble tablet, showing in relief two angels and two portrait
medallions of Mr. and Mrs. Levi P. Morton, and bearing the following
inscription:
“To the Glory of God ‖ and ‖ in Enduring Memory of ‖ Levi
Parsons Morton ‖ 1824-1920 ‖ Vice-President of the United
States ‖ Governor of the State of New York ‖ and ‖ of His
Wife ‖ Anna Livingston Morton ‖ 1846-1918 ‖ Whose Gifts Made
Possible the ‖ Building and the Furnishing of ‖ the Choir of
this Cathedral ‖ Yea saith the Spirit that They ‖ May Rest
from Their Labours ‖ and Their Works do Follow Them.”
[Illustration: THE FOUNDER’S TOMB]
=The Founder’s Tomb=, containing the remains of Bishop Horatio Potter,
sixth Bishop of New York,[31] in the Ambulatory between the fourth and
fifth great pillars opposite the entrance to St. Saviour’s Chapel, is a
beautiful example of an “altar tomb” such as are seen in many English
churches. Its position, immediately behind the High Altar, is that
traditionally reserved for the Founder of a cathedral. It is designed in
the English Gothic style of the 15th century after studies of the tomb of
Edward the Confessor in Westminster Abbey. The sarcophagus, the recumbent
figure of the Bishop and the figures of the five ornamental niches of
the front are of Indiana limestone. The figures, from left to right, are
those of (1) Edward the Confessor, with crown, scepter and orb; (2) St.
Remigius, with cup and scourge; (3) St. John the Divine, with pen, book
and eagle; (4) St. Isidore, with miter, pallium and crozier; and (5) St.
Theodosius of the Eastern Church, wearing a coronet with cross, holding
a staff and reading from a scroll. Above the niches is a decorative
moulding of oak leaves and acorns[32] with little squirrels at the ends.
On the edge of the slab on which the Bishop’s figure rests is inscribed:
“Horatio Potter, D.D., D.C.L., Oxon. ‖ Sixth Bishop of New
York, Founder of this Cathedral. Died 2d Jany. 1887, Aged 85
Yrs.”
On the rear of the sarcophagus is inscribed “St. John’s Day ✠ Anno
Domini 1921,” the day on which the Bishop’s remains were transferred
from Poughkeepsie to this tomb. Above the tomb, reaching to a height
of 15 feet above the pavement, is a canopy of American oak with richly
carved frieze and cresting, supported on corbels springing from the great
granite columns on either side. A narrow stairway behind the columns and
the tomb leads to a landing which permits a closer view of the figure
of Bishop Potter. The architect was Mr. Thomas Nash of New York and the
sculptor of the figures was Mr. Isidore Konti of Yonkers, N. Y.
=The Brownell Memorial Tablet= on the wall of the bay at the entrance to
the Chapel of St. Ansgarius reads as follows:
“In Memory of ‖ The Right Reverend ‖ Thomas Church Brownell,
S.T.D., LL.D. ‖ Born 1779 Died 1865 ‖ Third Bishop of
Connecticut 1819-1865 ‖ Presiding Bishop 1852-1865 ‖ and ‖
in Grateful Remembrance of the Foundation of ‖ the Bishop
Brownell Memorial Fund for the ‖ Endowment of the Cathedral by
His Daughter ‖ Frances Johnston Holland.”
=The Choir Boys’ Stone= on one of the piers of the Ambulatory near the
Chapel of St. Ansgarius, is the bust of a boy of the class of 1911,
carved by Mr. William Scott. It represents the choir boys’ contribution
to the building of the Cathedral.
The Seven Chapels of Tongues
The seven Chapels of Tongues, built around the Choir on lines converging
toward the Sanctuary and deriving their name from the fact that they were
intended for services of the church in the languages of the principal
ethnological groups or regions of the world, are one of the noblest
conceptions of the Cathedral. In early Gothic churches, the fundamental
idea of the apse with radiating chapels was Christ in the company of his
Saints. Here, in the great cosmopolitan Diocese of New York, this idea
has appropriately been carried a step further in these chapels to include
the idea of all the nations of the earth gathered around the Altar of the
Saviour of Mankind. They recall the cry of the multitude in Jerusalem at
Pentecost: “How hear we every man in our own tongue wherein we were born
... the wonderful works of God” (Acts ii. 8, 11). Among the interesting
services held in these chapels are those in the eastern (St. Saviour’s)
chapel for the Japanese and Chinese in their languages and for colored
people in English. The spirit fostered by these chapels is occasionally
reflected in great congregations, entirely of Italians, entirely of
negroes, or predominantly of some other race, at services held in the
main part of the Cathedral filling it to its utmost capacity.[33]
Services in English are held in one or more of the chapels every day of
the year, and oftentimes weddings and baptisms are held in them. As a
group, the seven Chapels of Tongues eloquently express the catholic and
democratic spirit of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine referred to on
page 14. They may be visited in order either from south to north or north
to south; but by beginning on the south side they will be seen in the
order in which they were observed on the exterior (p. 31), and by looking
through the archways of the Choir to the opposite side of the Ambulatory,
glimpses may be had of the tapestries and the clerestory windows in the
order in which they have been described. The chapels are all separate
gifts and are memorials of the persons mentioned under their respective
headings following:
The Chapel of St. James
ST. JAMES, the Apostle, after whom this chapel is named, was the son of
Zebedee and was a Galilean fisherman. He is sometimes called St. James
the Great to distinguish him from another Apostle called St. James the
Less. He was a brother of St. John the Divine. He went almost everywhere
with the Lord. After the ascension, he preached a while in Judea and
then in Spain. After his mission there, he was beheaded by the Jews,
and, according to tradition, his body was miraculously transported
back to Spain, where his relics are said to rest at Compostella.
Spanish historians chronicle 38 instances in which he is believed to
have descended from heaven and in shining white armor led the Spanish
armies against the Moors. Under the Spanish equivalent of his name, St.
Iago or Santiago, he became the patron saint of Spain and his name was
adopted as the Spanish war-cry. His shrine at Compostella was one of
the most popular for pilgrimages in the Middle Ages, and it was said
that two visits to Compostella equaled one to Rome. St. James is usually
represented in the dress of a pilgrim with a peculiar staff. His Memorial
Day is July 25.
The Chapel of St. James (13 on plan), designed by Mr. Henry Vaughan, is
in pure English Gothic _Architecture_ of the 14th century; 66 feet long
and 39 wide, with a sort of transept on the north side 15 feet wide;
seats 250 persons, and cost about $200,000. Its interior walls are of
Bedford, Ind., limestone. On the front of the _Altar_ of gray Knoxville,
Tenn. marble, is sculptured DaVinci’s Last Supper. The central feature
of the limestone _Reredos_ is a relief representing the Transfiguration,
after Raphael. In four niches, two on either side of the Transfiguration,
are statues of the four Evangelists with their appropriate emblems
at their feet (left to right:) St. Matthew with winged man; St.
Mark with lion; St. Luke with ox; and St. John with eagle. Beneath
the Transfiguration is a smaller sculpture of the Nativity, with an
alleluia angel on each side. On four escutcheons, two on each side of
the Nativity, are emblems of the condemnation and crucifixion (left to
right:) (1) Crown of thorns and spear (John xix. 2, 5, 34); (2) pillar to
which Christ was bound for scourging, cord, knotted scourge (John xix. 1)
and sponge on reed (John xix. 29); (3) ladder, sponge on reed and spear;
and (4) hammer, pincers, coat, and three dice (Mark xv. 24). Beautifully
carved canopies surmounted by six adoring angels crown the Reredos. The
stained glass _East Window_, by C. E. Kempe & Co. of London above the
Reredos, depicts in its three lights (left to right) St. Lawrence, St.
James and St. Vincent. In two walled-up panels of the window, one on
each side of the glass, are statues of St. Peter with keys (left) and
St. Paul with sword (right). _The Saint James Window_ in the middle bay
of the south aisle portrays in its four lights scenes in the life of
the patron saint of Spain (see page 71) and other subjects, as follows,
reading from left to right: Bottom, (1) Coat-of-arms of St. John and the
words, “James, servant of God;” (2) St. James preaching to the natives of
Spain; (3) St. James before the judge, forgiving his accuser and giving
him his blessing, “Peace be with thee;” (4) Coat-of-arms of King Ramira
I of Spain, and the words (to be read with those first quoted), “And of
the Lord Jesus Christ.” Middle, (1) “Unto his shrine the mighty and the
lowly fared on pilgrimage;” (2) “St. James, the radiant knight, upon
a great white horse;” (3) “Before the banner of his name the Moorish
warriors fled;” (4) “At Compostella still men serve Santiago’s shrine.”
Top, (1) angel with ΙϹ-ΧϹ symbol; (2) “They bore his body to a ship that
sailed for Spain;” (3) “Over his tomb they built a chapel passing fair;”
(4) Angel with Ichthus symbol.[34] In the tracery at the extreme top is
a representation of the Crucifixion. The window was given by Bishop
Potter’s daughters and was designed and made by Mr. Henry Wynd Young,
glass-painter, of New York City. In niches of the walls of the chapel
are the following statues and symbols: _East Wall_, St. Augustine of
England with crozier (left) and St. Gregory the Great (who sent him to
England) with papal tiara and papal cross (right) _West Wall_, end of
main aisle, above, Christ between his kinsmen St. James the Great (left)
and St. James the Less (right); and at end of south aisle, the Venerable
Bede. On four escutcheons, two on each side of the west door, are: (1)
A floriated cross (emblematic of the flowering or productiveness of the
Christian religion); (2) the monogram =ihc= (representing the first two
and last letters, uncial form, of the Greek word for Jesus[35]); (3) the
Greek cross form of the chi rho monogram (first two Greek letters of the
name Christ); and (4) the Alpha and Omega, the first and last letters
of the Greek alphabet, (Rev. i. 8). _North Wall_, statue of William of
Wykeham. In the upper part of the north wall is the gallery of the organ,
which is independent of the great organ of the Cathedral. Choir Stalls
near the Altar are a distinctive feature of this chapel. Two clustered
columns divide the south aisle into three bays in the middle one of which
is _Bishop Potter’s Tomb_, of Siena marble. On the tomb is a recumbent
figure of the Bishop in Serevezza marble, by Mr. James E. Frazer. The
Bishop is represented in his episcopal robes, and the execution is so
fine that even the texture of the lawn sleeves is apparent. On the front
of the tomb is inscribed:
“Henry Codman Potter ‖ MDCCCLXXXIII Assistant Bishop of New
York MDCCCLXXXVII ‖ Bishop of New York ‖ MDCCCLXXXVII-MCMVIII
‖ Upholder of Righteousness and Truth ‖ Soldier and Servant
of Jesus Christ.”
[Illustration: THE SANCTUARY OF THE CHAPEL OF ST. JAMES]
On the rear:
“He laboured that this Cathedral Church ‖ Should rise to the
Glory of God and as ‖ A witness to the Life of our Lord and
Master Jesus ‖ Christ that here the prayers of the children ‖
of many lands should rise to that ‖ Father in whom alone all
men are brothers ‖ Whose service is perfect freedom.”
Around the edge of the top slab:
“I saw the Holy City coming down from God out of Heaven ‖ and
I heard a great voice saying ‖ Behold the tabernacle of God is
with men and he will dwell with them ‖ and they shall be his
people.”
On the west wall is inscribed:
“The Chapel of St. James ‖ Consecrated ‖ May 2, 1916 ‖ To
the Worship of ‖ Almighty God ‖ And in Loving Memory of ‖
Henry Codman Potter ‖ Bishop of New York ‖ Born May 25, 1834
‖ Died July 21, 1908 ‖ The Gift of His Wife ‖ Elizabeth
Scriven Potter ‖ Born September 30, 1848 ‖ Died March 4,
1909.”
=Story of the Blind Woman.= A beautiful and touching incident occurred
in the Chapel of St. James a few years ago. One day, a woman who was
blind, deaf, and could make only a few hardly articulate sounds, but who
was cultured and could read by touch, visited the Cathedral with another
woman. The Verger, the late Charles F. Barnard, first led her the full
length of the Cathedral in order that she might comprehend its size.
Then the general features of the edifice were communicated by her friend
by the touch of their hands. The wood and stone carvings, however, she
read with her own fingers. When she came to the Chapel of St. James, she
wished to feel of Bishop Potter’s features as reproduced in the effigy
on his tomb, but on account of the delicacy of the marble, visitors are
not allowed to touch it. The blind woman, however, produced from her bag
a pair of thin white gloves, and by signs asked if she might feel of the
statue if she put them on. The Verger assenting, she ran her fingers
deftly over the Bishop’s countenance, felt of the signet ring on his
finger, etc., and then, satisfied, proceeded to the Altar. Here she knelt
down and began to feel of the relief representing DaVinci’s Last Supper.
As soon as she recognized the work, she threw up her hands in ecstasy and
exclaimed in broken accents, the best she could utter, “Vinci! Vinci!”
The venerable Verger, in relating this incident, said that he was moved
to tears by the spectacle of the blind woman, kneeling before the Altar,
with up-raised hands, “seeing” the Cathedral through the sense of touch.
One may well ask, if this blind woman could see so much spiritual beauty
in the Cathedral without eyes, how much more ought those to see who have
the blessed gift of sight.
The Chapel of St. Ambrose
ST. AMBROSE, or Ambrogio, the namesake of this chapel, was born in Treves
about 340, the son of a Roman Prefect in Gaul (now France). While in his
cradle one day, a swarm of bees settled upon him, clustering around his
mouth, but doing him no harm. A similar thing having happened to Plato,
it was considered an omen of future greatness. He studied law at Rome,
became a magistrate in upper Italy with court at Milan, and by his wisdom
and gentleness won such popular esteem that when called upon to settle of
succession of the bishopric of Milan between the Arians and Catholics he
himself was chosen by both parties to be Bishop of that see. He was one
of the most celebrated fathers of the church. His most distinctive symbol
is the bee-hive, although two human bones, the scourge, the crozier, the
mitre, etc. are sometimes used. The Memorial Day for St Ambrose is kept
on April 4.