St. Elizabeth Roman Catholic Church

9016 Buckeye Road, Cleveland; constructed 1917-1922. Italian Renaissance.

Exterior: Indiana limestone (Salem Limestone), set in smooth-faced ashlar. Parishioners were given a choice of brick or terra cotta for this church, but chose stone.

Interior: The narthex contains several statues and plaques. The base of the statue of Jesus in Mary's arms is faux art marble (imitation stone). The head of Jesus is white marble. The pedestal supporting it has a base of Black and Gold marble, a limestone quarried near La Spezia, Italy; a top portion of Verde Antique; and a post of dark marble. The four large gray cylindrical pillars in the church proper are Indiana limestone. The top of the communion railing is a fine grained white marble with gray streaks. Pilasters in the sanctuary are Indiana limestone. Steps leading to the altar are white marble with gray streaks. Most of the original main altar and the two side altars are imitation marble, or "art marble." The wainscoting and altar are Italian marble.

Remarks: The use of painted, faux marble for church interiors is an old tradition. Many Baroque churches in Italy and Hungary, for instance, have such faux marble. Indeed, faux marble columns are one of the hallmarks of Baroque churches (Norman, 1990, p. 211).

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The Center for Sacred Landmarks Monograph Series
website design by Mark Hoffman


From the Center for Sacred Landmarks monograph: Guide To Stones Used for Houses of Worship in Northeastern Ohio (December, 1999) by . Joseph T. Hannibal. Published by the Sacred Landmarks Partnership of Northeast Ohio

Web page design by Mark Hoffman

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