The highest three pulpits bore the initials P.A.P., which stood for President of the Aaronic Priesthood. It is little wonder, then, that sunstones were featured prominently on the Nauvoo Temple. Your purchase is secured by Epik. A 41-foot-long (12 m) stone arch ran north and south between the circular stairwells supporting the massive timbers for the tower above. The second room from the south-east corner had a stairway leading to a room in the mezzanine below. Today the Nauvoo Illinois Temple serves as a symbol of the promises of the Lord to His people and a monument to the early pioneers who sacrificed so much to build it. Weeks's design made use of distinctively Latter Day Saint motifs, including sunstones, moonstones, and starstones. The five-pointed star is a simple design that has shown up in the artwork of several cultures. The West end of the temple was a flat roofed section that supported the tower. The building was damaged by fire and a tornado before being demolished. In 2002, President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the rebuilt Nauvoo Temple. It is little wonder, then, that sunstones were featured prominently on the Nauvoo Temple. the floor was stained wood and the walls were painted white. There are over 40 of these stars found on the Salt Lake Temple. 4, page 4. They told him, “If you can work we can do with your work, but we have nothing to give you.” He replied, “I have not come here to work for pay. The second was purchased by the Smithsonian Institution from the Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County. It was clearly the most impressive feature of the temple. [9], Entrance to the first floor assembly hall, called the "Great Hall", was through two large double doors at the east end of the vestibule. Had the floor been limestone, it seems unlikely that they would have dug it up. Like Kirtland, the … The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The floor has been speculated to be made of wood, because when the mob occupied the temple briefly in late 1847, they broke through the floor to reach a sealed off room in the basement. A fitting symbol resting a top the highest pinacle of the Nauvoo Temple, where the Spirit of the Lord, even the Holy Ghost, rests down upon those assembled. I [committed] with [Brother William] Player that I would stick to the temple pay or no pay until finished and did. This symbol has a lot of meaning, and that meaning varies depending on how it is used on a particular temple. It was accessed via the two staircases at the West end of the building. At its base the Nauvoo Temple was 128 feet (39 m) long and 88 feet (27 m) wide with a tower and weather vane reaching to 164 feet (50 m). Above each sun are two hands holding trumpets, heralding the dawning of the gospel in this dispensation. As mob violence increased during the summer of 1845, he encouraged the Latter Day Saints to complete the temple even as they prepared to abandon the city, so portions of it could be used for Latter Day Saint ordinance, such as baptisms for the dead in the basement font. Again, the next had P.T.Q., for President of the Teachers Quorum and on the table at the bottom was written P.D.Q., for President of the Deacons Quorum. Resembling the pulpits used in the Kirtland Temple, and repeated in later temples, they were arranged with four levels, the top three consisting of a group of three semi-circular stands. The archways were approximately nine feet wide and twenty-one feet high. [9], The staircases, made of wood, provided access to all of the temple from the basement to the attic with a landing at each floor. [9], The staircase in the northwest corner was never completed. Artisans from Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Ontario labored to replicate these iconic symbols of the restored gospel.9. There may have been some kind of tank at the eastern end of the baptistry to store and heat water.[9]. The floor was made of red brick laid in a herringbone pattern. Evidence suggests that this mezzanine had fourteen small rooms, seven along each side of the North and South wall. However, Joseph Smith's youngest son, David Smith, rendered a painting of the temple's damaged facade, clearly shows half-circular windows at the basement level in the north and south corners of the facade. The Latter Day Saints made preparations to build a temple soon after establishing their headquarters at Nauvoo, Illinois, in 1839. The clouds of error disappear Before the rays of truth divine; The glory bursting from afar, The glory bursting from afar Wide o’er the nations soon will shine. The attic was not built of limestone but of wood. Accordingly, each pulpit had initials identifying the priesthood office of the occupant. The lowest level was a drop-table which was raised for use in the sacrament. A sunstone served as the capital, or head, of each pilaster. Sometimes the symbol may have multiple meanings on a given temple adding a rich depth of symbolism. It is little wonder, then, that sunstones were featured prominently on the Nauvoo Temple. It is often mistakenly thought that these stones represent the three degrees of glory in the Latter Day Saint conception of the afterlife, but the stones appear in the wrong order. Nauvoo Temple Stone Symbols There are many symbols carved in stone on the exterior walls of the Nauvoo Temple. The use of the symbol is all over many Catholic Cathederals throughout Europe as well as artwork dating back centuries to the earliest times of Christianity on historical record. Nor were they symmetrical, being sixteen feet in diameter from East to West and seventeen feet in diameter from North to South. The font's cap and base were carved molding in an "antique style" and the sides were finished with panel work. Church leaders commissioned this painting from artist Lewis A. Ramsey in 1923 for the centennial of Moroni’s first visit to Joseph Smith. [9], The floor would have a similar configuration as the Great Hall with a set of double pulpits and pews, but the room was never completed. There were actually two fonts built during the lifetime of the temple, a temporary wooden one, and a permanent limestone one. which stood for President of the High priests Quorum, and the folding table had the inscription P.E.Q. May 29, 2014 - ZionVision.com - Make an Offer if you want to buy this domain. [9], A decision was made to replace the wooden font in 1845, apparently because the water caused a mildew odor, and possibly because the wood had begun to rot. Each pulpit similarly had initials identifying the priesthood officers who occupied that stand. Lisle G. Brown. Access to the first floor mezzanine was directly from landings of the two staircases in the west end of the building. Below is an illustration from the Masonic book, The Craft and Its Symbols , p.75: (click to enlarge) Masonic symbols have been pictured and discussed in a number of books. Construction was only half complete at the death of Joseph Smith in 1844. Discover (and save!) They were patterned from the most beautiful five-year-old steer that could be found in the region. This page was last edited on 31 December 2020, at 01:26. On April 6, 1841, the temple's cornerstone was laid under the direction of Joseph Smith, the church founder and president; Sidney Rigdon gave the principal oration. At its base the building was 128 feet (39 m) long and 88 feet (27 m) wide with a clock tower and weather vane reaching to a total height of 165 feet (50 m)—a 60% increase over the dimensions of the Kirtland Temple. They change over time. Mormon apologists are correct when they insist that Christians have used the pentagram or pe… This symbol has a lot of meaning, and that meaning varies depending on how it is used on a particular temple. [9], The pulpits to the east, standing between the windows, were reserved for the Melchizedek Priesthood. [9], The basement proper was one hundred feet long and forty feet wide with six rooms of varying sizes on either side. This illustrated lecture takes as its subject a superficially documented and misunderstood feature of Mormon iconography, the pentagram. [1] “The Nauvoo Temple and Rebirth” [2] Davidson, Lee, “Nauvoo Sunstone at Smithsonian,” Deseret News, November 28, 1989 The Sun has been used as a temple symbol from the second Latter-day Saint temple, the Nauvoo Temple. The second temple of the Latter Day Saint movement was built 60 percent larger in dimensions than its predecessor, the Kirtland Temple. They were not true circles but were flatted on four sides. It was roughed in with temporary boards resting on the risers. On the Nauvoo Temple Known as the Morning Star in Rev 22:16 it is a symbol of Jesus Christ. Two railed stairways led to the font from the north and south sides. The next level down had P.S.Q for President of the Seventy Quorums. They were carved from pine planking that was glued together. After a succession crisis, Brigham Young was sustained as the church's leader by the majority of Latter Day Saints in Nauvoo. Church officials say the quarry was selected because it provided stone that is a close match to the limestone originally used. The rooms were dressing rooms for those using the font. These all stand out on the stone boldly. With the exception of the two rooms at the western end of the basement, reportedly used for clerical purposes, each side room rose two steps in height from the basement floor. It had seven large windows along the north and south wide, with four windows along the east wall. However, Strang's charges were never proven. I love the history of our Church and my pioneer ancestors. William Weeks' elevation of the front facade does not show windows at the basement level of the two stairwells, and photographic evidence is inconclusive. James J. Strang, leader of the Strangite faction of Latter Day Saints, accused Young's agents of setting fire to the temple. A WEB page devoted to the history, construction, destruction and appearance of the Mormon Nauvoo Temple in Illinois. Cabet, whose followers were called Icarians, hoped to establish Nauvoo as a communistic utopia.[5]. The Nauvoo Temple Vision At its base the building was 128 feet (39 m) long and 88 feet (27 m) wide with a clock tower and weather vanereaching to a total height of 165 feet (50 m)—a 60% increase over the dimensions of the Kirtland Temple. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}40°33′02″N 91°23′04″W / 40.5505°N 91.3844°W / 40.5505; -91.3844 This made the room about seventeen feet longer. Much of that quarry, however, was submerged by rising water behind the Keokuk Dam in 1912. The lower, face portion was carved from one piece of limestone, and the trumpets from another. [. When we speak of building the kingdom of God today, most of the time we mean it in a figurative sense: we serve in the Church, share the gospel with others, and follow the counsel of the living prophet. The Nauvoo sunstone, with its human face, is similar to the Masonic depictions of the sun. The oxen were solid stone and similarly were placed and appeared sunken into the floor. ], —Angels from heav’n and truth from earth Have met, and both have record borne; Thus Zion’s light is bursting forth, Thus Zion’s light is bursting forth To bring her ransomed children home.1, The walls of the temple featured 30 pilasters, each with a moonstone at the base and a sunstone at the top. On April 2, 1849, LeBaron sold the damaged temple to Étienne Cabet for $2,000. Some sources claim a private dedication on April 30, 1846 by Brigham Young. The sides of the rooms were stone and abutted the massive stone piers that supported the floors above. The Nauvoo Temple was in use for less than three months. In 2000, the church began to build a temple on the original site with an exterior that is a replica of the first temple, but whose interior is laid out like a modern Latter-day Saint temple. It is currently on display in a prominent position in the Museum of American History and Technology. Once the first floor was finished with pulpits and benches, the building was finally dedicated in private services on April 30, 1846, and in public services on 1 May. “The octagon draws on the symbolism of the number eight, emblematic of renewal. [2][3] The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio, United States, in 1836. This replica, based on the Smithsonian’s original, was hand carved by a master stonemason using the same type of Illinois limestone that was used for the original temple. There was a staircase in the second room from the Southeast corner leading to a room above, providing another access method to the attic. Notice the unique incorporation of the phases of the moon within the beautiful star window of the St. Louis Missouri Temple: Nauvoo, Illinois. Truman O. Angell, architect of the Salt Lake Temple said that the symbols of the Salt Lake Temple were based on the Nauvoo Temple. The room was flanked on either side by seven large, arched windows, with four similar windows along the east wall. A star stone was placed above each sunstone. Along with the Nauvoo Temple, the symbol is also used on the Salt Lake Temple and Logan Temple as well as other temples. The room was discovered by an anti-Mormon mob who broke through the floor of the vestibule above. (Matthew B. Outside windows also provided light along the north and south sides. Lambert was a skilled stonecutter from Yorkshire, England.4 After he was baptized in England, he decided to go to Nauvoo. There is no general consensus among historians and even Wiccans and witches are not in full agreement. The ears of the oxen were made of tin. Doors were never hung, the plastering was unfinished, and the floorboards were only rough timber, not the tongue and grove finished hardwoods of the other floors. The anti-Mormons claim that it is a Satanic symbol. After two years of construction, on June 27, 2002, the church dedicated the Nauvoo Illinois Temple, whose exterior is a replica of the first temple, but whose interior is laid out like a modern LDS temple. See Wandle Mace autobiography, typescript, 8–9, L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. Heber C. Kimball did all of these things, but as a blacksmith and potter, he also built the kingdom in a literal sense. standing for President of the Elders Quorum. When the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo, Illinois, in the winter of 1846, the church attempted to sell the building, finally succeeding in 1848. A foyer, corresponding in size to the vestibule below, connected the two stairway landings. [5] Three of the original sunstones are known to have survived and are on display—one is on loan to LDS Church's Visitor Center in Nauvoo, one is in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C, and the third and only one that has not been restored is displayed, along with the only moonstone on display, at the Joseph Smith Historic Center of the Community of Christ. There’s a scene from The DaVinci Code that illustrates this point well: Symbols have different meanings to different people. I quarried and worked the last stone called the capstone.”6, The first sunstone was installed on September 23, 1844.7 The original sunstones were actually two pieces of stone. The top most pulpits read P.H.P., which stood for President of the High Priesthood. Only two complete original sunstones are known to exist. There were also pews for a band and choir. These archways led to the vestibule, the formal entrance to the temple. 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