On Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:42:45 +0900, Miles Bader wrote:
Bruce writes:
grotesque and entirely pointless 19th century propylaeum.

What's wrong with propylaea (no idea how one is supposed to form the
plural...) anyway?


What is wrong with anything that is completely pointless?

The original served no useful purpose. It was purely a marketing
tool. It made a statement about the railway company that commissioned
it. And that's it.

Admittedly, it was a massive statement. The "Arch" became a familiar,
but ultimately pointless landmark. Then, in the 1960s, it got in the
way of turning a horrible mess of a railway station into something
that was truly fit for purpose.

It is notable that the proposal to rebuild the "Arch" includes a
nightclub and a restaurant, so the new one (if it is ever built) would
at least have some purpose. However, its heritage value will be very
limited, as to fulfil its purpose, it will almost certainly need to
have a slender structural frame clad with thin, light panels of
reconstituted stone.

The massive stone structure of the original would be ruled out on
practical and cost grounds, and only very few of the salvaged pieces
could be included. So the new one would hardly be a replica, more
like pastiche.

I doubt that it will ever happen.