Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel

Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel

Loretto Pennsylvania

Constructed: 1899

Frederick J. Osterling

40.50275286792395, -78.6303976190862

stone (worked rock), glass

3 stories tall

Religious

Romanesque Revival

The structure is unique in its form! It is very vertical in its footprint when viewed from above, though it is not necessarily quadratic. In fact, it appears like there is a rectangle-like shape that is followed by a circle near the bottom of the form. It is still pretty grand, with it still having at least 3 or 4 levels. It appears to have several entrances, with what looks like a main one at the bottom of what appears to be the biggest piece of the structure. This subsection looks like a castle. The other entrance is along the right hash from the previous one. Its materials are similar to that found in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, with stone and glass. It differs though between the two in construction style. The basilica does not use as many arches compared to the usage in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. In addition, it appears, especially in the interior, that the basilica and the Romanesque Revival style leans more toward the elements found in the Gothic revival style. Especially with the pyramid roofing with details on the four corner bases of them.

Image 1: Creative Commons

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Basilica_of_St._Michael_the_Archangel_-_Loretto%2C_Pennsylvania_03.jpg

Julian Forster

Lu Donnelly et al., "Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel", [Loretto, Pennsylvania], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/PA-01-CA6.