(Patchogue Post Office Bas Relief Frieze), (sculpture).

(Patchogue Post Office Bas Relief Frieze), (sculpture).

Saldarini & Pucci, design firm.

Van Pelt, John, 1874-1962, architect.

Erickson, R. W., contractor.

Indian Hill Stone Company, fabricator.

(Patchogue Post Office Bas Relief Frieze), (sculpture).

Digital Reference:

Approx. H. 4 ft. x W. 51 ft.

(Beneath eagle, incised lettering:) E PLURIBUS UNUM

A bas-relief frieze above the entryway of a neoclassically-designed, steel-framed building with a limestone facade. The frieze wraps around the front and sides of the entry pavilion. The front frieze has multiple panels with low-relief scenes of modern modes of transportation by land, sea and air, separated by coins. Included are, from left to right: a steam train and a truck; a zeppelin surrounded by biplanes; and, an ocean-going steamship, also framed in part by planes. Indian and Liberty Head coins, with busts in profile, separate the transportation panels. The side freizes contain geometric, Art Deco patterned panels separated by corner medallions, which feature symbols, perhaps representing the fields of medicine and agriculture. Below the front section of the frieze, above the entry, is a stylized aluminum grille and a clock.

A stylized eagle with a starred and striped shield appears on the front parapet over the frieze.

Allegory -- Arts & Sciences -- Transportation

Architecture -- Vehicle -- Train

Architecture -- Vehicle -- Truck

Architecture -- Vehicle -- Balloon

Architecture -- Vehicle -- Airplane

Architecture -- Boat -- Steamer

Object -- Other -- Money

Allegory -- Arts & Sciences -- Medicine

Allegory -- Arts & Sciences -- Agriculture

Animal -- Bird -- Eagle

Ethnic -- Indian

Figure male -- Bust

Outdoor Sculpture -- New York -- Patchogue

Architectural component

Administered by United States Postal Service, Northeast Region, New York Field Real Estate & Building Office, 90 Church Street, New York City, New York

Located Patchogue Post Office, 170 East Main Street, On facade & sides above entry pavilion, Patchogue, New York

The frieze was designed by the firm of Saldarini & Pucci, and produced by the Indiana Hill Stone Company. Architect John Vredenburgh Van Pelt was commissioned to design the Patchogue Post Office Building by the Office of the Supervising Architect of the Treasury. It was designed in 1931-1932 and constructed in 1932-1933, being one of the first buildings authorized under the expanded Public Buildings Program. Van Pelt and contractor R. W. Erickson had to work within the guidelines set by the Post Office Department, therefore the design of the building follows the neoclassical design, with the exception of the Art Deco-inspired frieze. The grille and clock below the front section of the frieze were manufactured by Northern Studies of Astoria, New York. The Patchogue Post Office is listed on the New York State and National Registers of Historic Places. IAS files contain the 1986 nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, New York survey, 1993.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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