The new Prince Hall Memorial in Cambridge, Massachusetts will have its dedication ceremony today, September 12th, at 12pm, which marks the birth date of Prince Hall. The ceremony will take place on historic Cambridge Common, and will be followed by a reception at 1pm, at the First Church Congregational, 11 Garden Street in Cambridge. The unveiling of the monument has been postponed to November, and an announcement of the exact date and details will be made soon.
According to an article in the Boston Globe,
Mayor E. Denise Simmons of Cambridge started the push for a monument for Hall in her city while she was a councilor in 2005.
“I was putting together my own family history. My grandfather was a Prince Hall Mason, and I began to research the significance of the organization,’’ she said. “As I got more interested in my grandfather as a mason, I began to wonder why nobody had ever installed a monument to Prince Hall, a man who had done such tremendous work.’
The monument is being created by Cambridge artist Ted Clausen.
“My first thought was, ‘Why don’t I know more about this man?’ What we have here is a founding father of the civil rights movement and Free Black Masonry.’’
Clausen said that in creating the memorial, he wanted to give others the same sense of discovery.
Five granite stones will be cut in the fashion of 18th- and 19th-century tombstones. They will be 6 feet tall and 27 inches wide, designed in relation to the human body. The stones will form a circle, and quotes from civil rights leaders will be etched on the rough granite outside finish. . .
Excerpts from Hall’s speeches and documents he signed and submitted to the Legislature will be etched on the mirror-like inside finish. Clausen said he wants readers to see their reflection as they read Hall’s words. Among Hall’s comments are, “For if I love a man for the sake of the image of God which is on him, I must love all, for he made all, and upholds all . . . let them be of what colour or nation they may, yea even our very enemies.’’
See the Memorial's official website for more information.
The artist's concept for this memorial sculpture is interesting. You reflect upon Prince Hall's sayings while staring at your reflection.
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