The Lincoln Memorial: Reflecting on Greatness

Larger than life: Art that inspires us through the ages

From the main point of arrival, visitors can look up at the grand classical temple and see Lincoln's statue within. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)

The Lincoln Memorial honors a great man and provides a place where visitors can reflect on a watershed time in American history. The site for the Lincoln Memorial was decided as an extension of the National Mall, a long linear parkland that’s a central area of Washington. The Capitol stands at one end, with George Washington’s monument—the obelisk—at the other. The mall was then extended with a long reflection pond leading to the Lincoln Memorial site situated near the Potomac River.

Arriving at the memorial, the steps incrementally and then abruptly lead upward to the memorial’s main floor, where one is met with giant-scaled Doric columns. The memorial has 36 columns at the perimeter of the rectangular building, one for each state in the Union at the time of Lincoln’s death.

On the interior, a row of columns lines each side of Lincoln’s sculpture, forming three chambers. The sculpture is centrally positioned in the main chamber, the south chamber holds Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, and the north chamber holds Lincoln’s second inaugural address.

Henry Bacon’s design was selected for the memorial. He chose the Parthenon as a model, as it’s symbolic of the Golden Age in Classical Greece.

Daniel Chester French was the sculptor chosen to depict Lincoln, and he does it with power and gentleness. His hands tell a story: The left hand clenched in a fist, showing his determination to save the Union, while his right hand is more open, showing his compassion by welcoming the confederate states back into the Union following the war.

Standing at the top of the stairs and gazing out over the National Mall, viewers are now connected to place, to history, and to what it means to be free in America today.

Two sets of stairs rise up to the Lincoln Memorial welcoming visitors from across America and the world. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)

Above each column on the frieze (a decorative band at the top of the columns) is the name of each state with the year they joined the United States in roman numerals. On the next step up, the attic frieze holds the 48 states that existed at the time of the memorial’s dedication on May 30, 1922. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)

A view from the side of the memorial of the National Mall with the reflection pond, the George Washington monument and Capitol building in the background. (/Shutterstock)

Passing through the 44-foot high, 7-foot diameter Doric columns made of Colorado marble, one arrives in the temple interior and in the presence of the stoic Abraham Lincoln sitting on a chair, calm yet poised. (Shutterstock)

Lincoln's sculpture sits atop a 10-foot-high plinth of Tennessee marble, raising Lincoln's height to 29 feet above the temple floor and creating a powerful presence in the room. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)

The stoic depiction of Lincoln is heightened by the atmospheric lighting in the temple. (Shutterstock)

A couple and a mother and son stand at the top of the memorial stairs looking out over the National Mall. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)

As Lincoln's statue looks out, children play on the stairs of the memorial and adults take leisurely walks on the mall, enjoying the opportunities available to them in the land of the free. (J.H.Smith/Cartiophotos)