Marlow Mausoleum - Mount Mora Cemetery - St. Joseph, Mo. - Mausoleums on Waymarking.com

From the National Register application:
(visit link)

"1893; Architect/Builder: unknown; 1 contributing building

The Marlow mausoleum was completed in 1893 in Victorian eclectic style. The rectangular-shaped structure is constructed of dressed blocks of gray granite. The roof is composed of long dressed slabs of granite that form a stepped corbel. The area formed by the corbel arch is filled with rock-faced stone blocks. At the four corners of the first, or lowest, roof slab there are Greek acroterion, pedestals devoid of ornamentation except for an almost imperceptible incised swirl carved into the face of the slab that continues the curved shape of the pedestal. The roof slab ends are dressed smooth. The uppermost cap slab is carved with a double bevel shape; in its facade is incised the numerals "1893". Rising above the peak of the cap is a stone, Greek-styled acroterion with a highly decorative, stylized palm frond deeply incised and wreathed with more lifelike foliate carving.

The walls are constructed of wide courses of smooth dressed granite alternating with much narrower courses of rock-faced stone. The narrow, uppermost course has a cavetto shape with the roof slabs slightly projected to form the simple cornice. The structure rests on a base course of rock-faced stone directly below a narrow dressed course slightly projected with a beveled top. On each side elevation, there is a tall narrow window with a bronze grille; behind each is a single colored-glass pane with an etched pattern.

A broad projecting pavilion, deeper than any other on the Row, dominates the facade. Its roof is a single stone with a slight pitch, with acroterion at the corners and a capstone at the peak with the same Greek inspired acroterion centered above on the main structure. On the face of the roof stone is centered the raised relief, plain-carved letters "MARLOW". At the top of the stone is a continuous molded cornice with an acanthus leaf motif writhing in high relief under the cornice and onto the frieze at either end. Below this at the outside angles and in the space between the stone column supports are simple carved patterns.

Below the roof is a massive lintel supported on three freestanding columns at either side of the entry. A single rock-faced stone serves as an abacus for all three. However, on the outside corner column there is an imaginative acanthus-leaved capital that twines and swirls in relief onto the rock-faced abacus. The simple Tuscan columns with Tuscan capitals form a pronounced flare toward the molded base and rest on a single, rock-faced plinth block with a slightly battered shape.

The entry has paired bronze grille doors behind which are paired, polished granite doors with hidden hinges, but exposed bulla ornament masking the through-attachment of the interior strap hinges. Around the bronze bulla are stylized patterns incised into the stone. The square interior chamber has two engaged crypts against the end wall. The crypts have a single decorative chamfered stone cap at six feet above the floor with a stylized incised pattern cut into a centered panel. The cap is dressed and polished limestone and rests above a red marble cornice. The two crypts have polished limestone faces and unusual bronze hinges at the bottom edge rather than the pulls found on every other tomb face in Mt. Mora. The mausoleum has suffered much over time. The walls were once veneered with smooth and polished slabs of limestone alternating with narrow bands of polished red veined marble. A cavetto-carved cornice is executed in red marble, and it is also used for a base course. Much of the marble and limestone has sloughed from the walls revealing behind the red brick structure of the mausoleum. The ceiling has an edging of polished limestone empanelling a center slab of polished veined marble. The floor is of polished white marble."

History: See Long Description... Visiting Hours/Restrictions: Daylight Hours Address: Website: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
Post a minimum of at least one picture, Gps not required. Explain experience of visit.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.