Civil Courts Building - St. Louis, MO
Posted by: 
Wampa-One
N 38° 37.673 W 090° 11.870
15S E 743932 N 4279208
Courthouse with cornerstone dated 1927 in Downtown St. Louis
Waymark Code: WM5A4M
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 12/05/2008
Views: 33
Name: Civil Courts
Year: 1930
Architectural Firm/Architect: Klipstein & Rathmann/Plaza Commission, Inc.
Standard Architectural Styles: ART DECO
Neighborhood: 35
History:
The Civil Courts Building is the last important civic structure in Saint Louis to follow the convention of looking to the past for architectural inspiration. The building is the replica of the tomb of King Mausolus built in 352 B.C. at Halicarnassus in Asia Minor. It has a step pyramid on top of a Greek Temple with a pair of griffins at the peak. It houses the law library atop the ten stories of courtrooms. The building combines elements of many divergent styles including Egyptian, Greek and Oriental. The Civil Courts Building is situated on a long 6-block open mall stretching to the west. Civil Courts was part of a massive public works project that included Kiel Auditorium. A 1923 bond issue financed both of them.
~ from St. Louis Historic Preservation website (
visit link)
The Civil Courts building was the first building to be financed by a huge 1923 bond issue. It was built on land that the city already owned. Plaza Commission Inc., a group of eight architectural firms and two engineering firms, oversaw the completion of the building. They chose the architects who designed the building.
The building's style can be described as Greco-Egypto-Assyro-Babylonian. At the top of the building's ten-story shaft is a step pyramid. The area below this pyramid is a law library, which is reputed to be a very attractive space with high ceilings and lots of light.
On top of the pyramid are two aluminum griffins that are twelve feet tall. Unlike mythological griffins, they have human faces that symbolize human mercy tempering justice.
~ from Michael's Architecture Page (
visit link)