In the Eye of the Beholder: Qualities of a Beautiful Mausoleum
If you wish to build a beautiful mausoleum – or a private burial chamber – for your family, begin the design process by viewing images of the most famous mausoleums in the world for inspiration.
Here’s what we can learn by studying the mausoleums and other beautiful buildings of the ancient world.
Read More»Stanford Mausoleum: A Memento Mori Comes To Life
In the spring of 1884, railroad magnet Leland Stanford and his wife Jane lost their son Leland Jr. to typhoid. The grieving parents decided to found a university in Leland Jr.’s memory. Using the land intended for their country estate’s home and garden, the Stanfords built a university for the future of others’ children. A Mausoleum to inter the remains of young Leland Stanford, Jr. and his parents was included in the grounds design.
The campus’s Mission Revival buildings were designed by the Boston based architect, Charles Allerton Coolidge. New York’s Central Park creator, Frederick Law Olmsted was commissioned as the landscape architect for the coeducational campus. Originally meant to be the cynosure of the university’s layout, the Stanford mausoleum was finally erected in the northwest of the campus, surrounded by the arboretum and Arizona Cactus Garden. At the behest of Mrs. Stanford, two Greek sphinxes were erected to guard the entrance of the mausoleum. However, the bare breasted female figures were deemed inappropriate and moved to the back of the building. They were replaced by two male, Egyptian-style sphinxes.
Read More»Where ‘Mausoleum’ Gets Its Meaning
There are many famous mausoleums:
The Taj Mahal, the tomb of the first emperor of Qin in China, and the tomb of Cyrus the Great, the founder and ruler of the 6th-century Persian Empire, are only a few.
The Taj Mahal
, an immense memorial carved out of marble between 1632 and 1653 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his favorite wife, ranks among the wonders of the world. So does the tomb of the first emperor of the Qin dynasty in China, which contains the 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots, 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses of his terra cotta army. The tomb of Cyrus the Great was a stopover for Alexander the Great during his conquest of Asia and remains a prominent monument in modern-day Iran.
Read More»Tomb of Jahangir: History of the Mughal Emperor Mausoleum
While you certainly have heard of The Taj Mahal, a white marble mausoleum on the bank of the Yamuna River in the Indian city of Agra, you may not have heard of The Tomb of Jahangir – and the nearby Tomb of Asif Khan, which are located on the banks of the Ravi River in Punjab, Pakistan. So let’s discuss this site nominated for UNESCO World Heritage Designation.
Read More»Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna, Italy
We all know that we will someday die. However, not all of us plan for this eventuality. One mausoleum in Ravenna, Italy – the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia – is a fine example of a beautifully designed final resting place commissioned by its future inhabitant. Let’s learn about the history of this beautiful historic site that was commissioned in the first half of the 5th century.
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi, Vietnam
One can’t read about the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum without learning about the famous corpse on display in the glass sarcophagus for ten months a year. However, the structure itself, which was inspired by Lenin’s Mausoleum in Moscow, is definitely worth the visit – as long as you do the necessary research before making the long trek.
Let’s learn about this famous mausoleum, which honors Ho Chi Minh, the founder of the Viet Minh and the Vietnamese Communist Party.
Read More»Forest Lawn Cemetery Mausoleums
Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York is the final resting place for over 152,000 souls. This historic cemetery was founded in 1849 by Charles Clarke, and covers more than 269 acres. Forest Lawn Cemetery is known for its monuments, mausoleums, and sculptures, as this 19th century style garden cemetery serves as a combination of outdoor museum, arboretum, park, and cemetery.
Read More»Woodlawn Cemetery Mausoleums in the Bronx, NY
Woodlawn Cemetery, in the Bronx, is one of the largest cemeteries in New York City. This 400-acre cemetery is the final resting place for more than 310,000 people. Established in 1863, Woodlawn Cemetery is designated a National Historic Landmark. It is an important cemetery, historically speaking, because it is a prime example of the transition from rural garden cemetery at the time of its establishment, to the more modern and orderly 20th-century cemetery style.
Read More»The United States’ Most Iconic Mausoleum
The most famous mausoleum in the world is the Taj Mahal, but the most visited mausoleum in the United States is Grant’s Tomb. Built almost twelve years after his death, Grant’s tomb is an iconic New York City landmark commemorating the life and passing of our 18th President and Civil War General, Ulysses S. Grant.
Read More»The Legacy of Ransom Eli Olds
Throughout his life, Ransom Eli Olds received recognition, awards, and accolades. Perhaps best known for founding the Oldsmobile Motor Company, Olds also started or helped to arrange several other companies, from parts suppliers to banks. Olds was also the first person to make use of an assembly line for the production of his automobiles. Henry Ford automated the assembly line some time later. Though Ransom E. Olds departed this life 64 years ago, his death has not disqualified him from current recognition and award.
Preservation Lansing, recognizing the recent repairs and renovations to the Olds Mausoleum in Lansing’s Mt. Hope Cemetery, entertained a nomination for the stately structure in the category “Non-Residential Project Costing Less Than $1 Million”. The specificity of the category was appreciated by Olds’ great-granddaughter Debbie Stephens, who along with her two sisters paid for the repair and restoration of the mausoleum.
“Non-residential – I like that,” she said. “It does have residents, but…”
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