| Princeton University Chapel | |
|---|---|
 The exterior of the Chapel seen from the southeast, with the Mather Sundial in the foreground | |
 | |
| Location | Princeton, New Jersey |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Ecumenical |
| Website | www.princeton.edu/religiouslife/chapel/ |
| History | |
| Consecrated | 1928 |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Architect | Ralph Adams Cram |
| Architectural type | Cathedral |
| Style | Collegiate Gothic |
| Groundbreaking | 1924 |
| Completed | 1928 |
| Construction cost | US$2.3 million |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | almost 2,000 |
| Length | 277 feet (84 m) |
| Width | 76 feet (23 m) |
| Height | 121 feet (37 m) |
| Materials | Sandstone,limestone |
| Clergy | |
| Dean | Alison Boden, Dean of the Chapel |
| Laity | |
| Organist | Eric Plutz |
Princeton University Chapel | |
    | |
| Coordinates | 40°20′56.0″N74°39′24.8″W / 40.348889°N 74.656889°W /40.348889; -74.656889 |
| Part of | Princeton Historic District (ID75001143[1]) |
| Added to NRHP | 27 June 1975 |
ThePrinceton University Chapel is aCollegiate Gothicchapel located on that university's main campus inPrinceton, New Jersey, United States. It replaces an older chapel that burned down in 1920. Designed in 1921 byRalph Adams Cram in his signature style, it was built by the University between 1924 and 1928 at a cost of $2.3 million. The chapel was rededicated in aninterfaith ceremony in 2002 following a major two-year restoration.
Its size and design evoke a smallcathedral of the English Middle Ages. The only university chapel of its size at the time it was built wasKing's College Chapel at theUniversity of Cambridge. Thefoundation is pouredconcrete, and thesuperstructure issandstone andlimestone. The main sanctuary consists of anarthex, a gallery, anave, twotransepts joined by acrossing, and an elevatedchoir.
The chapel's extensiveiconography consists ofstained glass,stonemasonry, andwood carvings. Among the stained glass are four "great windows", one facing eachcardinal direction, and four "Christian epic" windows in the walls of the choir. The iconography was planned by Albert M. Friend, a faculty member in Princeton's Department of Art and Archaeology, with the goal of portraying, in one scholar's words, a "synthesis between Christian faith and modern thought."[2]
The chapel seats almost 2,000 people. Anondenominational chapel, it hosts weeklyecumenical Christian services and dailyCatholicMasses. It also hosts several annual special events, such asbaccalaureate services andcommencements.
Princeton University built the chapel to replace the Marquand Chapel, which stood between where the present chapel and McCosh Hall stand until it burned to the ground in 1920.[3] The location for the new chapel was chosen for two reasons: symbolically, the new chapel would rise from the ashes of the old one, and practically, it would locate the new chapel centrally as the campus expanded eastward.[4][5]
Ralph Adams Cram, the university's supervising architect, designed and oversaw construction of the new chapel. Cram sought to build a crown jewel for theCollegiate Gothic motif he had championed on the Princeton campus.[2] The university'spresident,John Grier Hibben, also had a stake in the project: student hostility toward Princeton's brand of mainlinePresbyterianism was on the rise. An ordained minister, Hibben hoped the new chapel's majesty would inspire students to attend services of their own volition. Cram, a convert toHigh ChurchEpiscopalianism fromUnitarianism,[6] also lent support to this aim.[2]
Cram designed the chapel with the assistance of Alexander Hoyle, a member of his firm.[6] Albert M. Friend, a faculty member in Princeton's Department of Art and Archaeology, played a central role in planning the iconography.[2] It was built by Matthews Construction Company,[7] which worked on several projects on Princeton's campus.[8] Among those who contributed to the design ofstained glass windows wereCharles Connick, Henry Lee Willet (of the studio that would becomeWillet Hauser), andPhiladelphia-based stained glass artistNicola D'Ascenzo.[2][9]
The plans for the new chapel were made public in 1921.[6] Hibben called replacing the Marquand Chapel "an immediate necessity";[10] nonetheless, the project encountered financial problems early on. The insurance money from the Marquand Chapel was insufficient, and fundraising for the chapel competed with an ongoing general capital campaign for the university. Ground was broken during Princeton's commencement ceremonies in June 1924, and in the following year Cram and Hibben laid the cornerstone.[6] The construction received considerable media attention,[11] as it promised to be the largest university chapel in the United States and the second largest in the world afterKing's College Chapel, Cambridge.[12] The construction cost about $2.3 million and was completed in 1928.[6] Hibben led the dedication ceremony on May 31 of that year, in an elaborate ceremony covered byTIME.[12][13]
On March 13, 1960, less than six weeks after the first of theGreensboro sit-ins,Martin Luther King Jr., delivered a sermon at the chapel. In the sermon he called for universal brotherhood and a life of spiritual richness.[14] A plaque on the interior south wall of the chapel's nave commemorates the occasion.
The chapel underwent a two-year, $10 million restoration between 2000 and 2002.[15] Despite the complexity of the work, the chapel remained open throughout the restoration.[16] The project earned a New Jersey Historic Preservation Award in 2002,[17] and the stone work won the 2004 Tucker Award for Renovation and Restoration fromStone World magazine.[18] At the time, two experts working on the stained glass restoration called it the largest such project that had ever been undertaken in the United States; too large for a single studio, it was divided among studios in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and New York.[19][20]
Following the restoration, the chapel was rededicated in aninterfaith ceremony in which people belonging toBuddhism,Christianity,Islam, andJudaism gave prayers.[21] Leading the ceremony, then-Dean of Religious Life Thomas Breidenthal said, "This edifice is unmistakably Christian, [but] this chapel is meant to belong to all of us."[22]
The chapel'sCollegiate Gothic design evokes anEnglish church of the Middle Ages,[6][23] although several aspects of it, including thevault and its supports, recall French churches. The chapel iscruciform and is built on the scale of a large parish church or a small cathedral. The only precedent for a university chapel of this size was King's College Chapel, and only a small part of that chapel was used regularly.[24] Stillwell citesExeter Cathedral and the Octagon tower ofEly Cathedral as precedents for the architectural detail, but notes that the Princeton chapel's detail nonetheless differs significantly from these.[25]
Thefoundation is made of poured concrete. When the chapel was built, the rest of the structure above thegrade level was masonry, and the only metal reinforcement was some structural steel in the framing of the roof.[25] During the 2000–2002 restoration, somepinnacles were reset with stainless steel anchors.[17] The arches of thecrossing were designed to support the addition of a central tower,[25] but this option has not been exercised: in Bush and Kemeny's words, "Cram felt that Princeton already had enough towers."[6]
The chapel is approximately the size of a smallmedieval Englishcathedral. Measured on the exterior, it is 277 feet (84 m) long, 76 feet (23 m) wide at itstransepts, and 121 feet (37 m) high.[7] These dimensions make it about the same size asRipon Cathedral.[26] The exterior is constructed largely fromPennsylvaniasandstone, withIndianalimestone used for the trim.[16]
On the western end of the chapel is thenarthex, which has entrances on the north, west, and south walls. An additional door on the chapel's north side opens onto the Hibben Garden, named in recognition of John Grier Hibben's role in the chapel's construction and dedication.[27] The garden ofevergreens was designed by H. Russell Butler, Jr.[28] On the chapel's south side are an additional door at ground level to the east and an exterior pulpit, designed after one atMagdalen College, Oxford,[6] and namedBright Pulpit, in honor ofJohn Bright.[29] The chapel is connected on its eastern side to Dickinson Hall by the Rothschild arch, symbolizing a connection between religion and scholarship.[30] Cram resigned as Princeton's supervising architect over the inclusion of the arch, which he disliked;[31] nonetheless, he participated in the chapel's 1928 dedication ceremony.[12] Nearby is the Mather Sundial, a replica of the Turnbull Sundial in the courtyard ofCorpus Christi College, Oxford. A statue of apelican, areligious symbol associated with Corpus Christi, sits atop the sundial, which was presented to Princeton in 1907 byWilliam Mather, then the governor ofVictoria University of Manchester.[32]
Each of the three narthex entrances sits below atympanum. The model for the tympanum above the main, west entrance was designed and sculpted in clay by John Angel and carved in stone byEdward Ardolino.[33] Cram shared credit for the chapel's quality with Ardolino in particular, saying his stone carving was "the best of its kind."[34] Ardolino is credited as executing all of the building's stone carving.[35]
The tympanum above the west entrance depictsJesus as described in theBook of Revelation, together with the four beasts and other relevant iconography.[7] It resembles the tympanum of the Royal Portal ofChartres Cathedral.[30] Beneath the figure of Christ is Princeton University's shield, illustrating the university's motto,Dei sub numine viget ("Under the power of God she flourishes"). The tympana above the north and south entrances depict theAnnunciation and theBaptism of Christ, respectively.[7] The latter was sculpted by Robert Baker.[36]
The exterior iconography includes two notable whimsical elements. Adownspout on the east wall features a relief of a bulldog head; a decades-old[37] myth relates that Cram placed it there to recognizeYale University, whose mascot is the bulldog. (Cram was not a Yale alumnus and in fact did not attend college, so it is unclear what interest he might have had promoting Yale.)[38] A sculptor who worked on the chapel during its construction placed small carvings of his face and Cram's at the bottoms ofcrockets flanking the main entrance; Cram is identifiable by his eyeglasses.[30]
The Office of Religious Life calls the chapel the third-largest university chapel in the world.[39] According to Milliner, it also ranks among the tallest in height. In maximum height Princeton's chapel, which does not have a tower or other appendages, is exceeded only by the belltower of theBasilica of the Sacred Heart at theUniversity of Notre Dame, the tower of theDuke UniversityChapel, the tower of theUniversity of Chicago'sRockefeller Chapel, and thecampanile ofValparaiso University inIndiana'sChapel of the Resurrection. In height of the nave at the crossing it is second only toKing's College Chapel at theUniversity of Cambridge.[40]
Measured in the interior, the chapel is 249 feet (76 m) long, 93.5 feet (28 m) wide at itstransepts, and 78.5 feet (24 m) high at the crossing.[25] Most of the interior is limestone, but the aisles and the central area of the choir areAquia Creek sandstone. Sound-absorbing tile is mounted on parts of the wall andvault.[25] Running west to east, the main sanctuary consists of anarthex, a gallery, anave, twotransepts joined by acrossing, and an elevatedchoir;[41] it seats almost 2,000.[6] The building's southeast corner houses avestry.[41]
Inscribed on the narthex wall facing the nave is "A Prayer for Princeton",[42] which as of 2008 was still used in services at the chapel.[43] Another inscription, fromPsalm 100, refers toWestminster Choir College, which holds its commencement ceremonies in the chapel. Two staircases on the east and west of the narthex lead to an upper gallery, which looks out upon the nave.[42]
Three doorways lead from the narthex into the nave,[42] which is 74 feet (23 m) high[25] and named for Hibben.[44] It is divided into three vertical levels: anarcade at ground level, atriforium beneath the roofs of theaisles, and aclerestory. The configuration and its proportions are typical of English churches, but the nave's vaulted ceiling and thecolonnettes supporting it recall French churches. The gallery above the narthex is at the level of the triforium. The aisles are narrower than in medieval churches and are used for passage rather than seating.[23] The south aisle features five window bays, while the north has four;[45] where the easternmost bay would be is the entrance to aside chapel called the Blessed Sacrament Chapel.[46][47] The pews in the nave are constructed from wood originally intended forCivil Wargun carriages; over 100 carvers spent more than a year producing the intricate carvings.[46]
The northern transept is named forHenry Gurdon Marquand, the benefactor of the Marquand Chapel, which burned to the ground in 1920 and which the present chapel was built to replace.[48] AnAmerican flag flown by theUSSPrinceton hangs from the transept's north wall.[49] The southern transept is named for Chester Alwyn Braman, the first donor to the University Chapel Fund. A staircase leads from the Braman Transept to the Bright Pulpit.[50]
The choir, namedMilbank Choir forElizabeth Milbank Anderson[51] is elevated by several steps. An altar stands at the far east end. The altar and the choir stalls were built and carved byIrving and Casson, A. H. Davenport Company, inSherwood Forest oak;[52] Cram speculated that the wood may have dated from the time ofRobin Hood.[53] According to Stillwell, the woodwork "represents an outstanding example of American craftsmanship."[54]
Apulpit ofoak stands in front of the choir facing the nave. It originated in the north of France, probably in the mid-1500s. ItsFrench Renaissance style suggests that it was made during the reign ofHenry II. Thelectern is also oak and dates from the 1600s. It had been used in a church nearAvranches, France, for 200 years. A private individual purchased it shortly before theconfiscation of church property during theFrench Revolution. It changed hands several times before Hibben obtained it for the chapel.[55]
The chapel'sorgan has 7,897 pipes in 135 ranks and 109 stops.[56][57] It was designed byErnest M. Skinner and installed in 1928. Skinner invented theContra Fagotto stop for the Princeton chapel organ in response to a request by Princeton's director of music. In 1990 the organ was dismantled and shipped toEngland for a major restoration byMander Organs.Thomas Trotter gave the re-opening recital on the restored organ in 1992.[58][59]
The chapel'siconography consists of over 10,000 square feet (930 m2) of stained glass[60] as well as stonework and wood carvings. Albert M. Friend, a faculty member in Princeton's Department of Art and Archaeology and an expert onmedieval art, was the primary planner of the iconography, with the support and assistance of Hibben, Cram, and others. A devout Christian, Friend shared Hibben's goal of persuading Princeton students to choose lives of Christian observance and sought with the chapel's iconography, in Milliner's words, "to carefully dismantlematerialist objections to Christian faith and to articulate Princeton's synthesis between Christian faith and modern thought."[2] Kessler calls the stained glass "asumma of the heritage of Christianity up to the early twentieth century."[61]
The stained glass windows of the nave's north and south aisles represent one aspect of this synthesis. The north windows depict Biblical figures and scenes,[62] while the south windows contain images associated with human knowledge.[2] The lower of these, at the triforium level, depict the teachings of Christ, while the six upper windows at the clerestory level depict influential figures inPhilosophy,Theology,Chivalry,Poetry,Law, andScience, as read from east to west.[63] The Science window faces a window due to Willet on the north wall with scenes fromGenesis, symbolizing harmony between the Christian story of the Creation and the modern means of understanding it.[2]
Four large stained glass windows are found in the main sanctuary.
The doorway to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel on the north wall of the nave is topped by carvings of shields representing three Christian religious centers,Jerusalem,Rome, andCanterbury, and flanked by carvings representing theseven virtues and correspondingseven vices.[45] The other door leaving the Blessed Sacrament Chapel is topped by carvings of shields representing three medieval universities,Oxford,Paris, andSalamanca, and flanked by carvings representing the seven liberal arts (theTrivium and theQuadrivium) and theseven gifts of the Holy Spirit.[46]
Large stained glass windows due to Connick[69] in the walls of the choir retell four "Christian epics":theDivine Comedy andLe Morte d'Arthur on the north wall andParadise Lost andPilgrim's Progress on the south wall. Milliner notes that images of historical and legendary people carved into the choir's woodwork "reflect the intended seating during a Chapel ceremony".[46] Images of figures connected to music are carved into the front (west), where the choir would sit, and images of scholars are carved into the back (east), where faculty would sit. Behind the altar are carved images of eight religious figures: fourCatholicsaints to the north, and four leaders ofProtestantism to the south. The epic windows reinforce the idea of a "Catholic north" and a "Protestant south": Catholics wrote the north epics and Protestants the south epics. In an ecumenical touch, the north and south are symbolically united by "The Love of Christ" in the Great East Window.[70]
Stained glass windows telling the story of theBook of Job are set into the walls of the staircases between the narthex and the gallery.[71] Friend was known for delivering popular lectures on Job, and Milliner speculates that Friend had these windows included to address theproblem of evil.[2] Connick designed the windows in consultation with Friend, but they were made by others after the former's death.[2]
The chapel's iconography pays tribute in places to the otherAbrahamic religions.Abraham himself is depicted in a stained glass window on the north side of the nave, together with aStar of David, aChristian cross, and astar and crescent.[2] Other windows showBaruch Spinoza[72] andMuhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi;[30] both images were planned before the chapel was built.[2]
In several places the chapel's iconography includes images of figures associated with Princeton University:
The chapel operates within university's Office of Religious Life.[80] It is overseen by the Dean of the Chapel. The current Dean of the Chapel is Theresa S. Thames, who is also Dean of Religious Life at Princeton.[81]
The Office of Religious Life calls the chapel "the home of regular religious services for many of the university's faith groups, including the 264-year-oldecumenical Christian worshiping community [...] that founded Princeton in 1746."[39] Though the university was once closely associated with thePresbyterian Church, it has never been affiliated with any religious denomination.[82] In keeping with this tradition, the chapel hosts ecumenical Christian services each Sunday.[83]CatholicMass is celebrated daily,Reconciliation is offered several days a week, and there isEucharistic Adoration twice weekly.[84]
The chapel also hosts several annual special events.
ThePrinceton University Chapel Choir rehearses, provides music for the weekly service, and performs occasional concerts in the chapel.[89]
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