I adore all things Tiffany, especially his architectural decorations, so I’m surprised that I only recently discovered these mosaics (thanks, mom!). They are shoved off to the side of the Philadelphia Mint’s lobby and not well lit or marked, but still… There are seven glass mosaics that have children (?) engaged in the ancient Roman process of creating coins: melting, granulating, annealing, weighing, stamping, and finishing (they were originally commissioned and installed in a former mint building, which opened in 1901 and has since been demolished and replaced by this 70’s monstrosity). The design was based on an ancient Roman wall painting unearthed in Pompeii in 1895, showing winged cupids performing these jobs. The mosaics were moved to the current mint building in 1971 and are on view in the lobby whenever the mint is open for tours. Photos are not allowed, so these are taken from postcards from the shop. For a more spectacular Tiffany mosaic, visit “The Dream Garden” two blocks away (A Secret Tiffany Masterpiece).
Location: Old City
Beautiful mosaics! If you’re ever in Cleveland, the Lake View Cemetery (which is one of my favourite places) has a small chapel that is filled with Tiffany glass mosaics (in addition to the excellent Garfield Memorial, the Haserot Angel, etc etc – it’s a great place!).
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Thanks! I’ll definitely add it to my list. Victorian Cemeteries and Tiffany – can’t beat that combination!
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