Edward Maene (21 April 1852, Bruges, Belgium – 4 December 1931, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a

Belgian-American Belgian Americans are Americans who can trace their ancestry to people from Belgium who immigrated to the United States. While the first natives of the then-Southern Netherlands arrived in America in the 17th century, the majority of Belgian immi ...

woodcarver Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...

and

cabinetmaker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (s ...

. Based in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, he was a master carver in wood and stone, and executed designs by architects such as

Wilson Eyre Wilson Eyre, Jr. (October 30, 1858 – October 23, 1944) was an American architect, teacher and writer who practiced in the Philadelphia area. He is known for his deliberately informal and welcoming country houses, and for being an innovator in ...

Willis G. Hale Willis Gaylord Hale (January 1848, Seneca Falls, New York – August 29, 1907, Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a late-19th century architect who worked primarily in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His flamboyant, highly-ornate style ...

Cope and Stewardson Cope and Stewardson (1885–1912) was a Philadelphia architecture firm founded by Walter Cope and John Stewardson, and best known for its Collegiate Gothic building and campus designs. Cope and Stewardson established the firm in 1885, and were jo ...

Will Price William Lightfoot Price (November 9, 1861 – October 14, 1916) was an American architect, a pioneer in the use of reinforced concrete, and a founder of the utopian communities of Arden, Delaware and Rose Valley, Pennsylvania. Early life Price w ...

, Horace Wells Sellers, and

Milton B. Medary Milton Bennett Medary Jr. (February 6, 1874 – August 7, 1929) was an American architect from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, practicing with the firm Zantzinger, Borie and Medary from 1910 until his death. Biography Medary attended the University ...

. Maene's

choir stalls A choir, also sometimes called quire, is the area of a church or cathedral that provides seating for the clergy and church choir. It is in the western part of the chancel, between the nave and the sanctuary, which houses the altar and Church tab ...

and

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular architecture, for ex ...

for the

Washington Memorial Chapel Washington Memorial Chapel — located on Pennsylvania Route 23 in Valley Forge National Historical Park — is both a national memorial dedicated to General George Washington and an active Episcopal parish in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania ...

at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, have been described as "the finest examples of hand carved wood in this country."

Career

Maene learned the stone- and wood-carving trade in his native

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and studied in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. He immigrated to the United States in 1881, and settled in Philadelphia in 1883. There is evidence to suggest that he worked as a carver for

Daniel Pabst Daniel Pabst (June 11, 1826 – July 15, 1910) was a German-born American Victorian decorative arts#Furniture, cabinetmaker of the Victorian Era. He is credited with some of the most extraordinary custom interiors and hand-crafted furniture in th ...

, the premier custom-furniture maker in late-19th century Philadelphia.Robert Edwards, "The Arts and Crafts Go to Work in Philadelphia, 1876–1926
(PDF)
paper presented at the September 20–23, 2012 conference: ''The Workshop of the World: The Arts and Crafts Movement in Philadelphia'', Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. He opened his own workshop at what is now 239 South Lawrence Court, a half-block east of Pabst's workshop at 269 South 5th Street. Within less than a decade his shop employed "from twenty to twenty-five assistants." His nephews John, Victor, Louis and Armand Maene all apprenticed in his shop.Robert Edwards, "When You Next Look at a Chair: The Arts and Crafts Furniture of William L. Price," in George E. Thomas, ''William L. Price: Arts and Crafts to Modern Design'' (Princeton Architectural Press, 2000), pp. 319-30. John J. Maene (1863–1928) was hired by architect/designer Will Price as foreman for the Rose Valley furniture shop.

Wilson Eyre

Maene executed designs by architect

, working on local projects such as the Dr. Henry Genet Taylor House and Office (1884), in

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 ...

; a new

Dutch Colonial Dutch Colonial is a style of domestic architecture, primarily characterized by gambrel roofs having curved eaves along the length of the house. Modern versions built in the early 20th century are more accurately referred to as "Dutch Colonial Rev ...

façade and interiors for the Rowley-Pullman House (altered 1886, demolished 1963), at 238 S. 3rd Street, Philadelphia; the William H. Walmsley Building at 1022 Walnut Street, Philadelphia (1887, demolished); and the University Club at 1316 Walnut Street (altered 1887). A 24-year-old

Charles Grafly Charles Allan Grafly, Jr. (December 3, 1862May 5, 1929) was an American sculptor, and teacher. Instructor of Sculpture at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for 37 years, his students included Paul Manship, Albin Polasek, and Walker Hanc ...

worked with Maene on the Rowley-Pullman House. Maene's frieze for the Walmsley Building vestibule was exhibited alongside Grafly's

spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame; between the tops of two adjacent arches or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fill ...

for a Rowley-Pullman House doorway at the 58th annual exhibition of the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) is a museum and private art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.''Catalogue of the Fifty-Seventh Annual Exhibition of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, March 10-April 21, 1887'' (Philadelphia, PAFA, 1887

/ref> For the

Charles Lang Freer House The Charles Lang Freer House is located at 71 East Ferry Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The house was originally built for the industrialist and art collector Charles Lang Freer, whose gift of the Freer Gallery of Art began the Smithsonian I ...

(1892), in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, Maene modeled in clay Eyre's free-form chandeliers of dangling vines, the whimsical front doorbell surround, and other detail work, all later cast in bronze. Maene's shop carved exterior stonework for Eyre's City Trust Building (1888, demolished c.1923), at 927-29 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia; and did work on Eyre's Newcomb Memorial Chapel (1894–95, demolished 1954), at

Newcomb College H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, or Newcomb College, was the coordinate women's college of Tulane University located in New Orleans, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It was founded by Josephine Louise Newcomb in 1886 in memory of her daughter. ...

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

Willis G. Hale

Maene's shop carved exterior stonework for one of the most notorious buildings in Philadelphia—architect

's own Hale Building (1887), at the southwest corner of Chestnut & Juniper Streets. A 7-story speculative office building—later known as the Lucas Building, the Keystone National Bank Building, and by other names—it seemed to squeeze an entire Gothic castle's worth of ornament into a narrow city lot. Critic

Montgomery Schuyler Montgomery Schuyler AIA, (August 19, 1843, Ithaca, New York – July 16, 1914, New Rochelle, New York) was a highly influential critic, journalist and editorial writer in New York City who wrote about and influenced art, literature, music ...

, writing in the magazine ''

Architectural Record ''Architectural Record'' is a US-based monthly magazine dedicated to architecture and interior design. "The Record," as it is sometimes colloquially referred to, is widely-recognized as an important historical record of the unfolding debates in a ...

'', pronounced it an "architectural aberration": "Absurd ... irrational, incongruent and ridiculous," one of "the monstrosities of Chestnut street." "Perhaps the most bizarre-looking skyscraper of the nineteenth century," it is now beloved by many for its funky awkwardness. Although the first story of its Chestnut Street façade has been altered repeatedly, much of the rest of its exterior remains intact. Hale designed, and Maene's shop carved exterior stonework for the

Peter A. B. Widener Peter Arrell Browne Widener (November 13, 1834 – November 6, 1915) was an American businessman, art collector, and patriarch of the Widener family of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Widener was ranked #29 on the ''American Heritage'' list of the f ...

city house (1887–88), at the northwest corner of Broad Street and Girard Avenue, Philadelphia. The Wideners occupied this for barely a decade—architect

Horace Trumbauer Horace Trumbauer (December 28, 1868 – September 18, 1938) was a prominent American architect of the Gilded Age, known for designing residential manors for the wealthy. Later in his career he also designed hotels, office buildings, and much of ...

soon designed them a Neoclassical palace,

Lynnewood Hall Lynnewood Hall is a 110-room Neoclassical Revival mansion in Elkins Park, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Vacant today, it was designed by architect Horace Trumbauer for industrialist Peter A. B. Widener and built between 1897 and 1900. Conside ...

(1897-1900), just outside the city. In 1900, the city house became the Widener Branch of the

Free Library of Philadelphia The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system that serves Philadelphia. It is the 13th-largest public library system in the United States. The Free Library of Philadelphia is a non-Mayoral agency of the City of Philadelphia gove ...

. It was destroyed by fire in 1980.

Frank Miles Day

Frank Miles Day Frank Miles Day (April 5, 1861 – June 15, 1918) was a Philadelphia-based architect who specialized in residences and academic buildings. Career In 1883, he graduated from the Towne School of the University of Pennsylvania, and traveled to Europe ...

won the 1888 architectural competition to design the

Art Club of Philadelphia The Art Club of Philadelphia, often called the Philadelphia Art Club, was a club in Philadelphia, founded on February 7, 1887, to advance the arts.

, at 220 South Broad Street.Philadelphia Art Club
from Philadelphia Architects and Buildings. Completed in 1889, Maene executed its interior woodcarving:

A most remarkably effective use of white pine has been made in many of the mantels throughout the house. In the cafe and other apartments this ordinary wood has been so treated and finished that it has all the elegant effects of the richest and rarest grains of tropical forests, and moreover the genuinely artistic carvings lend an air of the greatest elegance. The carvings of the mahogany mantels in the dining room are particularly fine. For its wood carving the club has been fortunate in having the services of Edward Maene.

The building was demolished in 1976.

Cope and Stewardson

designed, and Maene carved, the rood screen (1894) for St. Luke's Episcopal Church, in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. Architect and author

Ralph Adams Cram Ralph Adams Cram (December 16, 1863 – September 22, 1942) was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic Revival style. Cram & Ferguson and Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson are partner ...

later described it as "one of the best pieces of ecclesiastical wood-carving in America."

Charles Custis Harrison Charles Custis Harrison (May 3, 1844 – February 12, 1929) owned several sugar refineries in Philadelphia from 1863 to 1892, and served as Provost of the University of Pennsylvania from 1894 to 1910. Early life Harrison was born on May 3, 1844 ...

became University of Pennsylvania provost in 1894, and immediately removed

Frank Furness Frank Heyling Furness (November 12, 1839 - June 27, 1912) was an American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his diverse, muscular, often unordinarily scaled b ...

as unofficial campus architect, replacing him with the young firm of Cope and Stewardson. Beginning with the Quadrangle Dormitories, Harrison and his architects remade the campus in an exuberant

Neo-Jacobean The Jacobethan or Jacobean Revival architectural style is the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the English Renaissance (15 ...

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

style. Maene's workshop provided expert architectural carving for the exteriors of the new buildings, including 69

grotesques Since at least the 18th century (in French and German as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...

(bosses) for the Quadrangle. These

caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, a ...

s of people and animals were carved ''

in situ ''In situ'' (; often not italicized in English) is a Latin phrase that translates literally to "on site" or "in position." It can mean "locally", "on site", "on the premises", or "in place" to describe where an event takes place and is used in ...

''—blank limestone blocks had been mortared in above the second story, and his crew stood upon

scaffolding Scaffolding, also called scaffold or staging, is a temporary structure used to support a work crew and materials to aid in the construction, maintenance and repair of buildings, bridges and all other man-made structures. Scaffolds are widely use ...

to carve them:

Take, for instance, a boss of a man holding a tankard. The architect makes a rough charcoal sketch of the figure and sends the sketch to the sculptor. The sculptor models it in clay. He makes, in clay, a boss of the same size and the same relief as the real stone boss on the dormitory building is to be. Of course, the charcoal sketch is not much to go by. The sculptor must use his brain in his work. It is not mechanical; it is real creative work on his part, this making of a model from a sketch. After the model has been finished and approved by the architect it is sent out to the University, and the carver sets it up beside him and gets to work on the stone. He measures here and there, makes nicks here and there, and then he proceeds to copy his model. It takes him three or four days to finish one of the fourteen inch bosses. The work must be done with care, delicacy and tact. Only the most skillful carvers are fit to do such jobs.

Maene's team for the Quadrangle grotesques comprised Henry F. Plasschaert (of the Philadelphia School of Industrial Art), who modeled the figures in clay; William John Kaufmann and

August Zeller August Zeller (7 March 1863, Bordentown, New Jersey – 11 January 1918, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) was an American sculptor and teacher. An exceptional carver, he studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) under Thomas Eakins. He ...

(a former student of

Thomas Eakins Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (; July 25, 1844 – June 25, 1916) was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the most important American artists. For the length ...

), who carved most of the grotesques; and Edmund T. Wright, who oversaw the carving and added finishing touches. Cope and Stewardson also contracted with Maene to carve exterior ornament for the

University of Pennsylvania Law School The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Law or Penn Carey Law) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is among the most selective and olde ...

(1900), and for the Quadrangle's War Memorial Tower (1901) and Provost's Tower (1911).

Will Price

Architect

William Lightfoot Price William Lightfoot Price (November 9, 1861 – October 14, 1916) was an American architect, a pioneer in the use of reinforced concrete, and a founder of the utopian communities of Arden, Delaware and Rose Valley, Pennsylvania. Early life Price ...

designed " Woodmont" (1891-1894), for Congressman

Alan Wood, Jr. Alan Wood Jr. (July 6, 1834 – October 31, 1902) was a steel magnate and a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. The nephew of John Wood, who also served in Congress, Alan Wood Jr. was born in Philadelphi ...

The chateau-like mansion overlooked the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...

and the Alan Wood Steel mills in

Conshohocken, Pennsylvania Conshohocken ( ; Lenape: ''Kanshihàkink'') is a borough on the Schuylkill River in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania in suburban Philadelphia. Historically a large mill town and industrial and manufacturing center, after the decline of industry i ...

. Maene and his shop carved its exterior and interior architectural sculpture. The June 1894 issue of ''The Architectural Review'' published photographs of the newly-completed "Woodmont," and Maene placed an advertisement promoting his work:

The carved work in Stone and Wood illustrated in this issue of THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW, from the house of Alan Wood, Jr., Esq., of Philadelphia, was all done by E. Maene.
Other work of the same character has been executed from the designs of Messrs. W. L. Price, Wilson Eyre, Jr., Frank Miles Day & Bro., Cope & Stewardson, Willis G. Hale, Wilson Brothers & Co., and others, including the University Club, Philadelphia Art Club, the Rood-screen in St. Luke's Church, and many of the finest private residences in and about Philadelphia.''The Architectural Review'', vol. 3, no. 2 (June 1894), Bates & Guild, Boston, pp. viii-x, 40.

Maene executed cabinetry and furniture work for Price from the mid-1890s to the mid-1910s. In 1902, Price hired Maene's nephew John to run the Rose Valley furniture shop, which manufactured pieces designed by the architect. That same year, Price designed major interior alterations to the John S. Clarke House in

Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania Bryn Mawr, pronounced , from Welsh for big hill, is a census-designated place (CDP) located across three townships: Radnor Township and Haverford Township in Delaware County, and Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It i ...

, although it is unclear whether these were executed by Edward Maene, John J. Maene, or both.George E. Thomas, "The Evolution of the Real Estate Divisions of the Eastern Portion of the Bryn Mawr Campus, the Construction of "the Owl," and Its Historical Color Schemes, Yarrow Street and Morris Avenue, Bryn Mawr College" (1998)
(PDF)
from Bryn Mawr College.

Shakespeare cabinet

William Welsh Harrison, heir to a sugar-refining fortune (and brother of the University of Pennsylvania provost), commissioned an elaborate Gothic Revival cabinet to house his

First Folio ''Mr. William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies'' is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio, published in 1623, about seven years after Shakespeare's death. It is cons ...

of Shakespeare plays. The 1903 commission was given to architect

—who had designed Harrison's residence,

Grey Towers Castle Grey Towers Castle is a building on the campus of Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania which is in Cheltenham Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, United States. The castle was designed by Horace Trumbauer and built starting in 1893 as th ...

(1893–97), in

Glenside, Pennsylvania Glenside is a census-designated place (CDP) located in Cheltenham Township and Abington Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It borders Northwest Philadelphia. The population was 7,737 at the 2020 census on a land area of ...

—but it was Will Price who designed the piece's highly carved oak casing. The cabinet featured statuettes of

Shylock Shylock is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's play ''The Merchant of Venice'' (c. 1600). A Venetian Jewish moneylender, Shylock is the play's principal antagonist. His defeat and conversion to Christianity form the climax of the ...

and Portia, characters from ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

''. The piece was not listed in the Rose Valley shop's records, and "was probably made in Edward Maene's shop."George E. Thomas, ''William L. Price: Arts and Crafts to Modern Design'', (Princeton Architectural Press, 2000), pp. 322-23, 328-29. Warren Powers Laird, director of the University of Pennsylvania School of Architecture, described the ''Harrison Shakespeare Folio Cabinet'' as "the finest piece of furniture ever made in this country."Robert Edwards
"Lost,"
''American Decorative Arts''. Its current whereabouts are unknown.

Horace Wells Sellers

Architect Horace Wells Sellers and Maene collaborated on multiple projects for St. Clement's Episcopal Church, at 20th and Cherry Streets, Philadelphia.About Us – Building
from St. Clement's Church. In 1908, Sellers increased the height of the church's apse by about 15 feet (4.6 m), raising the ceiling of the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

within it. Maene's workshop carved a new red English sandstone altar, eight oak statues of saints, and a

baldachin A baldachin, or baldaquin (from it, baldacchino), is a canopy of state typically placed over an altar or throne. It had its beginnings as a cloth canopy, but in other cases it is a sturdy, permanent architectural feature, particularly over h ...

(canopy) high over the altar. Sellers designed a large painted altarpiece with folding doors for above the altar, and Maene executed the casework for it. The altarpiece's 7-panel mural, ''Christ Reigning from the Cross'', was painted by artist Frederick Wilson. Sellers designed and Maene executed St. Clement's Lady Chapel, which was dedicated in 1915. Its altar, reredos, and groin-vaulted ceiling are all carved from red English sandstone. The altar front has three arched

niche Niche may refer to: Science *Developmental niche, a concept for understanding the cultural context of child development *Ecological niche, a term describing the relational position of an organism's species *Niche differentiation, in ecology, the ...

s, each with a relief figure of an angel. The reredos features three niches with statues of Saint Joseph and Saint Elizabeth flanking a central statue of the ''Virgin and Child''. The baptismal font was designed by Sellers, executed by Maene, and dedicated in 1917. The Lea Memorial Pulpit, based on designs by Sellers and executed by Maene, was dedicated in 1921. The canopy over it (carved by Maene) was added several years later. The Stations of the Cross were designed by Sellers, but never executed by Maene. They were completed by Bruno Louis Zimm after Maene's death, and dedicated in 1932. Sellers altered the

of St. Luke's, Germantown, 1924-29. Executing Sellers's designs, Maene carved a new set of choir stalls, installed behind the rood screen he had carved for Cope and Stewardson 30 years earlier.

Milton Medary

Washington Memorial Chapel

Architect

Milton Bennett Medary Milton Bennett Medary Jr. (February 6, 1874 – August 7, 1929) was an American architect from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, practicing with the firm Zantzinger, Borie and Medary from 1910 until his death. Biography Medary attended the University ...

designed the

(1908–20), built on the site of the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

's 1777-78 encampment at

Valley Forge Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the B ...

. Executing Medary's designs, Maene created and carved the oak pews, choir stalls, reredos, and other church furniture. The first piece carved by Maene was the limestone and oak baptismal font. The building's ornate oak doors were executed by him in collaboration with master metalworker

Samuel Yellin Samuel Yellin (1884–1940), was an American master blacksmith, and metal designer. Career Samuel Yellin was born to a Jewish family in Mohyliv-Podilskyi, Ukraine in the Russian Empire in 1884. At the age of eleven, he was apprenticed to a ...

Nicola D'Ascenzo Nicola D'Ascenzo (September 25, 1871, Torricella Peligna, Italy – April 13, 1954, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an Italian-born American stained glass designer, painter and instructor. He is best known for creating stained glass windows fo ...

created the chapel's stained glass windows.

St. Mark's Church

Medary designed the Fiske Portal (1922–23), a new doorway for St. Mark's Episcopal Church at 1607-27 Locust Street, Philadelphia. Executing Medary's designs, Maene created the doors and carved the

polychromatic Polychrome is the "practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of colors." The term is used to refer to certain styles of architecture, pottery or sculpture in multiple colors. Ancient Egypt Colossal statue ...

"Christ in Majesty" tableau above them; Yellin fashioned their highly ornate iron hinges and hardware; and

installed stained glass between the figures of the tableau, turning the tympanum into a

transom Transom may refer to: * Transom (architecture), a bar of wood or stone across the top of a door or window, or the window above such a bar * Transom (nautical), that part of the stern of a vessel where the two sides of its hull meet * Operation Tran ...

. The project was (patronizingly) celebrated as a harmonious collaboration among immigrant artists—"iron work by Samuel Yellin from Poland; wood-carving by Edouard Maene from Belgium; stained glass by Nicola D'Ascenzo from Italy." Medary also designed, and Maene also carved, the Crucifixion tympanum over the church's rear door.

St. Andrew's Chapel

Medary designed, and Maene created and carved, church furniture for the St. Andrew's Chapel (1926), of the Philadelphia Divinity School, at 42nd and Locust Streets."Divinity School Chapel Completed," ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', October 24, 1926, p. 11.

ly two memorials have so far been set in place within the structure. These are a lectern and a
prie-dieu A prie-dieu ( French: literally, "pray oGod") is a type of prayer desk primarily intended for private devotional use, but which may also be found in churches. A similar form of chair in domestic furniture is called "prie-dieu" by analogy. S ...
, or prayer desk and bench, to be used by the priest during the services. They are carved in wood and are the work of Ernest Maene. The lectern is covered with an intricate design of which the outstanding elements are delicately carved angels. It is so arranged that it can be turned and will hold a Bible with the epistle lesson on one side and on the other a second Bible opened at the lessons in the Gospel.
The same artist is responsible for the desk, which, because of its several architectural elements, is possibly a more elaborate piece of work. The prayer desk is entirely carved, the chief motif being a choir of archangels in prayer. On the wall which forms the back of the desk is the legend of the memorial.

Other commissions

In an 1897 advertisement, Maene listed (unspecified) work on other Philadelphia churches: St. Peter's Episcopal Church at 6000 Wayne Avenue; the

Church of the New Jerusalem The New Church (or Swedenborgianism) is any of several historically related Christian denominations that developed as a new religious group, influenced by the writings of scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772). Swedenborgian o ...

at 22nd and Chestnut Streets; Patterson Memorial Presbyterian Church at 63rd & Vine Streets (c.1895, demolished); Princeton Presbyterian Church at 38th Street and Powelton Avenue (demolished); and a Philadelphia synagogue: Temple Keneseth Israel at Broad Street and Columbia Avenue (1891, demolished)."E. Maene, Sculptor,"
''The American Ecclesiastical Review'', vol. 13, no. 6 (December 1897), New York. p. 706. Architects Milligan & Webber designed The Memorial Church of the Holy Nativity (1898–99), in

Rockledge, Pennsylvania Rockledge is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,638 as of the 2020 census. Rockledge is surrounded by Abington Township, and Philadelphia, and shares a ZIP Code with Jenkintown. Geography Accordin ...

. Maene executed its reredos, including a white marble high-relief tableau of ''

The Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...

'' (after

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...

) over the altar, carved by

. Architect Edgar V. Seeler designed a new building for '' The Evening Bulletin'', at the northeast corner of Juniper and Filbert Streets, Philadelphia, 1906-08. The façade carving by Maene's shop featured the newspaper's

logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wordma ...

: a globe with wings, in high relief over the main entrance. Maene modeled a portrait medallion of Pauline Elizabeth Henry (1907), for the Memorial Church of St. Luke the Beloved Physician in Bustleton, Philadelphia. Architect Herbert J. Wetherill altered the interior of Grace Episcopal Church, in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia, 1908-09. Executing Wetherill's designs, Maene carved the white marble altar, reredos and a 23-foot (7 m) tall rood screen. Architect George T. Pearson designed a new building for St. Alban's Church (1915), in the Olney section of Northeast Philadelphia. John Barber executed its French Gothic woodwork, for which Maene did the figural carving. The oak rood screen features a large Crucifix, flanked by separate figures of Mary and St. John, all carved by Maene. Above the altar, the centerpiece of the reredos is a high relief sculpture of "Christ blessing, vested as a priest and surrounded by adoring angels.""St. Alban's Church, Olney," ''Church News'' (Diocese of Pennsylvania, December 1915), pp. 130-134. Henry F. Plasschaert modeled this Benediction bas relief in clay, and Maene carved it in white marble. St. Peter's Episcopal Church in

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was seriously damaged in the 1918 Morgan Munitions Depot explosion. Maene was part of the team that restored the church's interior. The Given Memorial rood screen (1922), at St. Paul's Episcopal Church,

Columbia, Pennsylvania Columbia, formerly Wright's Ferry, is a borough (town) in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 10,222. It is southeast of Harrisburg, on the east (left) bank of the Susquehanna River, acr ...

, was "designed by Fowler, Seaman & Company, ecclesiastical architects, and the work wrought by E. Maene, Italian wood sculptor. … The entire screen is beautifully carved and sculptored, and is twenty-one feet high, and thirty feet wide." Edward Maene's December 5, 1931 obituary in ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' listed work on the

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. The museum was a joint commission shared by Wilson Eyre, Cope and Stewardson, and Frank Miles Day, and was completed in sections between 1899 and 1929. A. Stirling Calder created the architectural sculpture for the entrance courtyard. The nature of Maene's work on the museum has not yet been published.

Business

Maene was profiled in an 1892 business directory:

E. Maene, Sculptor, No. 239 Griscom Street, between Fourth and Fifth, Spruce and Pine.—The demand for decorations in architecture in this country is a growing one; and it is well represented in this city by Mr. E. Maene, whose office and works are at No. 239 Griscom Street, between Fourth and Fifth, Spruce and Pine Streets. This gentleman was born in Belgium, where he first studied his profession, which he has followed for the past twenty-four years. He came to this country ten years ago, coming to Philadelphia two years later, and seven years ago he established business here, meeting with excellent success. He employs from twenty to twenty-five assistants, occupies a two story building 100x40 feet in dimensions, and executes designs for ornamental and statuary work of all kinds. He has done a large amount of carving for residences and public buildings, including the Jewish Temple, Keystone Bank, Bank at 927 Chestnut Street, etc. His trade extends all over the country. All of Mr. Maene's products bear the stamp of artistic excellence and the imprint of the master's hand. The city is to be congratulated upon the accession of her industries, than which no more praiseworthy institution exists within her boundaries.E. Maene, Sculptor,"
''Historical and Commercial Philadelphia'', (New York: A.F. Parsons Publishing Company, 1892), p. 178.

The T-Square Club, an association of Philadelphia architects, elected Maene an honorary member. His advertisement in the club's 1896-97 catalogue shows that he had moved his workshop about a half-block, to south of Pine Street:

The listing in a 1900 directory shows his business at the same addresses (although Griscom St. had been renamed Lawrence St.), and his residence in the Bustleton section of Philadelphia. The T Square Club's 1922 exhibition featured works by Philadelphia master craftsmen:

(iron work),

(stained glass), John H. Bass (decorative sculpture), and Edward Maene (furniture).

Personal

Maene married Susanne Menegaux (1856–1916) in 1883, and they had two children, Claire (1887–1967) and Victor (1892–1962). Nephews Victor and Armand Maene were working as wood carvers in

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in 1893. Nephew Louis A. Maene became a ceramics artist and teacher. Following the 1906 closure of the Rose Valley furniture shop, nephew John J. Maene taught wood carving and modeling in clay at the

Drexel Institute Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Art, S ...

. Bustleton, Philadelphia was the site of an airport used for air mail. Son Victor A. Maene became an airplane mechanic for the U.S. Postal Service.Catherine V. Allen, College Park Aviation Museum, College Park, Marylan

/ref> Daughter Claire Maene married Dr. John P. O'Brien, and their descendants still live in the Philadelphia area.

Edward Maene, sculptor of many church altars and stone figures in this city, died suddenly of a heart attack in his home, 9626 Banes street, Bustleton, last night. He returned from his studio at 206 South Hutchinson street in apparent health, but collapsed after eating dinner. He was 79 years old.
Mr. Maene, who was born in Belgium and came to the United States when 28, was well-known for his carvings in the Valley Forge Memorial Chapel, the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania dormitories and a large number of churches. He is survived by a son, Victor, and a daughter, Mrs. Claire N. O'Brien. Funeral services will be held Monday at a moratorium on Bustleton pike, Bustleton.''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', December 5, 1931, p. 5.

Maene and his wife are buried in the cemetery of

Pennepack Baptist Church Pennepack Baptist Church, also known as the Pennepek Baptist Church and the Lower Dublin Baptist Church, is an historic, American Baptist church that is located in Bustleton, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It is one of the oldest Baptist congreg ...

, Bustleton, Philadelphia. He carved the stone angel holding a lily that marks her grave. File:TaylorFacade.jpg, Dr. Henry Genet Taylor House and Office (1884), Camden, New Jersey. File:WidenerMansion (cropped).jpg, P. A. B. Widener Mansion (1887–88, demolished 1980), Philadelphia. File:1606 q Locust, Philly.JPG, John Converse House (1897), 1610 Locust St., Philadelphia, exterior stonework File:University of Pennsylvania Law School.JPG,

(1900), Philadelphia. File:Provost's Tower T-Square Club Catalogue 1912 frontispiece.jpg, Provost's Tower (1911), Quadrangle Dormitories, University of Pennsylvania. File:Bulletin Building T-Square Catalogue 1909 p.181.jpg, Bulletin Building (1906–08), Philadelphia. File:St. Clement's T-Square Club Catalogue 1915 p.50.jpg, Lady Chapel (1915), St. Clement's Episcopal Church, Philadelphia. File:Screen for Presidents' Pew, Washington Memorial Chapel.jpg, Screen for Presidents' Pew (1917),

, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. File:Choir stalls by Edward Maene, Washington Memorial Chapel.JPG, Choir screens (1917), Washington Memorial Chapel. File:East choir stalls by Edward Maene, Washington Memorial Chapel.jpg, East choir

(c.1920), Washington Memorial Chapel. File:St Marks Philadelphia-0219.jpg, Crucifixion tympanum (c.1923), St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Philadelphia.

Notes

References

External links

Edward Maene, wood carver
at Philadelphia Architects and Buildings

at the Winterthur Library contain the furniture scholar's research on Edward Maene. {{DEFAULTSORT:Maene, Edward American people of Belgian descent American cabinetmakers American architectural sculptors American male sculptors Artists from Philadelphia Sculptors from Pennsylvania 1852 births 1931 deaths