A tiny Gothic mausoleum for one, or at the most two. It suggests “Gothic” with a shallow point at the top of the façade, with a kind of streamlined suggestion of buttresses, and with deco-uncial lettering for the name of the deceased.
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Thomas L. West Mausoleum, Homewood Cemetery
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Kress Mausoleum, Homewood Cemetery
Almost starkly modern in form, the Kress mausoleum balances its simple cubical shape with a profusion of ornamental etching, an elaborate bronze door, and unusually artistic letters for the family name.
Stained glass on the inside echoes the external ornament. There are stained-glass windows on the sides as well as in the rear.
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Friday Mausoleum, Calvary Cemetery
Everything seems a bit louder and more obvious in a Catholic cemetery. Here the name of the family is very large; the cross decorations are big (you would not find crosses at all on a Doric mausoleum in a Protestant cemetery), and even the cornices are fat and obvious. We should also mention artificial flowers even on the most expensive mausoleums, because nothing can discourage the faithful from leaving artificial flowers.
The shape of this particular mausoleum is interesting. The details are classical and the decorations are Christian, but the shape is much more like the shape of the Egyptian temples Masons liked to build for themselves. We almost never find the Egyptian style in a Catholic cemetery, but we find echoes of it in the forms of some mausoleums.
Statues of Hope (with anchor) and Faith (with book) guard the entrance. Faith has grown a good crop of shield lichens.
Obviously old Pa Pitt likes this mausoleum. He took quite a few more pictures, but most of them are variations on the same themes. These should be just about enough to convey a good impression of the style and decorations.
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Fine Mausoleum, West View Cemetery
Once in a while we see an unusually tasteful modernist mausoleum. This is a good example. The form is simple, but everything is in exactly the right proportions. The retaining wall behind the mausoleum embraces it, adding to the composition; even the little square urns, each with a perfectly trimmed ball of boxwood, are in exactly the right proportions.
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Kamin Family Mausoleum, West View Cemetery
A splendid Egyptian mausoleum with a fine view of the Pyramids out the back window.
