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Scottish Rite Temple

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1924, Herbert M. Greene Company; Ralph H. Cameron, supervising architect. 308 Ave. E
  • (Photograph by Gerald Moorhead )

Standing in an area that has been almost denuded of buildings, the Scottish Rite Temple is one of the finest public buildings of the 1920s in the state. The source of the monumental design is the famed Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. The Scottish Rite Temple in Washington, D.C. (1911–1915), by John Russell Pope, is also an interpretation of the ancient monument. For San Antonio, Greene and Cameron limited the colonnade to the facade wall, but the overall quality of the decoration makes up for this. The stepped massing of solid walls builds up to form an artificial acropolis supporting the temple front. Of particular note are the massive bronze entrance doors by Pompeo Coppini, which focus on the image of George Washington, perhaps the most famous mason in American history.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Gerald Moorhead et al.
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Data

What's Nearby

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Citation

Gerald Moorhead et al., "Scottish Rite Temple", [San Antonio, Texas], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/TX-01-SA11.

Print Source

Cover: Buildings of Texas

Buildings of Texas: Central, South, and Gulf Coast, Gerald Moorhead and contributors. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2013, 149-149.

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