An Egyptian tomb extraordinary for its restraint: with none of the slightly cartoony Egyptian accoutrements that generally mark the style, it seems to return to the simplicity of the mid-nineteenth-century Egyptian Revival (compare, for example, the Walter mausoleum in the Allegheny Cemetery). The sloping sides, the projecting curves of the cornice and lintel, and the trapezoidal door frame are the elements that mark it as Egyptian.
Built in about 1860, this is one of the first wave half-underground mausoleums in the Alegheny Cemetery. It probably had bronze doors originally, but it is easier to keep a brick wall from being stolen. The angel on top is an unusual detail for this type of mausoleum.
One is tempted to describe this peculiar construction as “Doric Romanesque.” The rusticated stone and ponderous style cry out for Romanesque details, but instead we get smooth Doric columns and a smooth arch that seems to belong to another structure altogether. In fact, Father Pitt, who seldom passes a negative judgment on anyone’s mausoleum, is compelled by sheer honesty to say that he does not regard this design as a success. It is a cacophony rather than a harmony of disparate ideas. The bronze doors, however, are splendid, and no one can take that away from them.
A scale model of the Pantheon in Rome, the Bindley mausoleum suggests that Mr. Bindley must have been somebody awfully important. Actually, he is remembered most for being entombed in this elegant mausoleum.
An unusual style Father Pitt might call “Deco Romanesque.” The shape and tasteful restraint of the design are more in line with the Renaissance style, but the arch is trimmed with Romanesque details.
