Konti wrote the proposal above a little over 100 years ago. Primarily Isidore Konti’s proposal covered the task of modeling and carving the recumbent figure of Bishop Potter as well as the five saints in the niches. First came a sketch model, then a full size one. Lastly the limestone figure was carved. The combined sum of the work in 2021 dollars would be roughly $60,000. However with the small number of architectural sculptors around today as compared to 1920 New York, it would likely be considerably more. This document, this connection to the man is precious. Konti carved the sculpture 37 years after the death of the sixth bishop of New York, the Founder of the Cathedral. For that reason he used photographs like the one below.
In a letter to architect Thomas Nash, Potter’s daughter, Mary Chauncy, wrote,
I have been thinking a great deal of my visit to Mr. Konti’s studio, and the wonderful results that he has obtained from photographs.
– Mary Chauncy to Nash, August 31, 1920
Additionally. several of Konti’s Yonkers friends posed for the saints figures, specifically Edward the Confessor (extreme right) and St. Theodosius (far left). Thomas Nash, the architect, designed the sarcophagus. The saints figures and as well as the Potter’s recumbent figure are Konti’s work.
The Architect’s Proposed Drawing
Above is an early proposed design for the tomb. Above all you will notice that the five saints are missing. The richly carved canopy of American oak has also been modified. It is now supported on corbels springing from the granite columns on either side.
Thomas Nash died in 1926. Bishop William T. Manning, the tenth bishop of New York (1921-1946), paid tribute to the architect in the New York Times.
“For many years he acted as architect for Trinity Parish, and he has left his impress upon some of the important monuments of the city, among them the fine tomb of Bishop Horatio Potter.
His interests and his gifts were many, but his highest trait was his genius for friendship.”
– William T. Manning, New York, Feb 2, 1926
When we look back, these three prominent men, whose lives connected in the 1920’s, keep us mindful of the multitude of stories and connections due to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.
- We are indebted to Wayne Kempton, Archivist of the Diocese of New York and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine for his many contributions to this post, especially. Isidore Konti’s proposal.
- More on Bishop Potter’s Tomb in our previous post
- The Sculpture of Isidore Konti, 1862-1938, Isidore Konti, Hudson River Museum.
- The Late Thomas Nash, New York Times, Feb 4, 1926