Holy of Holies (Salt Lake Temple)

Yesterday, the Church posted an image of the Holy of Holies in the renovated Salt Lake Temple. It was the first color image of the room (excepting the Stained Glass) that has ever been posted. 

 

There were only a few images previously. The first two come from The House of the Lord from James Talmage:

Talmage described it: “The floor is of native hard-wood blocks, each an inch in cross-section. The room is of circular outline, eighteen feet in diameter, with paneled walls, the panels separated by carved pillars supporting arches; it is decorated in blue and gold. The entrance doorway and the panels are framed in red velvet with an outer border finished in gold. Four wall niches, bordered in crimson and gold, have a deep blue background and within these are tall vases holding flowers. The room is practically without natural light, but it is brilliantly illumined by a large electrolier and eight side clusters of lamps. The ceiling is a dome in which are set circular and semicircular windows of jeweled glass, and on the outer side of these, therefore above the ceiling, are electric globes whose light penetrates into the room in countless hues of subdued intensity.”

In addition to the stained glass dome, there is a large stained glass panel of the First Vision. This panel was copied for the Salt Lake Seventeenth and Second Wards (in a much larger and grander fashion).

A colored photo of this window was taken for and shown in BYU Studies: 

But the image published to President Dallin H. Oaks' social media showed the room (a small portion, including the window) in color, as well as the anteroom that leads to it:

The Holy of Holies is accessed off of the Celestial Room, between the Sealing Rooms. Between the set of sliding doors is this small anteroom with six additional steps, flanked by hand-carved balustrades. Their newel posts on the top have bronze figures symbolic of innocent childhood, holding flowers clusters that each have an electric bulb inside. At the end of these stairs is a second set of sliding doors leading to the Holy of Holies itself. The second set of sliding doors are symbolic of the veil from the Biblical Tabernacle and Temple.

The Holy of Holies room serves two purposes. One is for the President of the Church to have a private place to approach God in prayer. The second is to administer the Second Anointing, a less well-known, sacred temple ordinance that has been administered in the Church since Joseph Smith. Similar to the LDS initiatory, which involves anointing, this ordinance carries with it the promise of being set apart as a King or a Queen in God's kingdom. The architecture references this--on either side of the mirror, above the panels, are depictions of a crowned man.

A common question is whether other temples have a Holy of Holies. The answer is yes and no. Each temple has a sealing room that can serve as a Holy of Holies, more commonly for the administration of the second anointing. This ordinance is not only administered in Salt Lake. 

In early pioneer temples, sometimes this room is identifiable by its unusually ornate or beautiful architecture, such as in Manti:

 

More commonly, in current temples, there is always one sealing room that has access to a small closet with a sink, since water is used for part of the ordinance. Other than this small closet, the sealing room is usually identical to others, but there is a space that can be used.

I thought it was thrilling to see a color image of this beautiful, sacred space. I am skeptical as to whether it will be a part of the open house tour--not so much because it is too sacred to be seen, but because it is such a small, tight entrance to a small space, I think it would be difficult to manage the flow of visitors. (We often see temples leave out these cramped areas from tours because of the logistics of managing the crowd.) 

Kanab Ward

Built in 1923-24, the Kanab Chapel has a long history of renovations, but remains the physical center of the community.

(Image Source: Church History Library)

This was the first official chapel in town. Prior to this building, they met in a hall, a bowery, and other locations. The town citizens donated their time, money, and labor for the building. It's built from local red bricks and stone from a quarry. A clock tower was above the building on the steeple.

(Image Source: Church History Library)

The cornerstone was taken from Kanab Canyon. It has a landscape image in it, a unique touch for LDS cornerstones.

(Image Source: Church History Library)

Heber J. Grant dedicated the building in 1928. In 1959, an expansion was made, including a brand new chapel. The original chapel area was converted into classrooms. The clocktower was moved to the new steeple of the expansion.

(Image Source: Church History Library)

When the building became dated, the Church originally planned to tear down the whole thing and build a new Church. Kanab members asked that the original building be preserved. And so in 2011, the extension was torn down, and a brand new chapel was build to the west. Instead of tearing down the original chapel, they restored the exterior and converted it to a Familysearch Center. It opened in January 2013.

The interior is bright and new, but has local relics and artifacts.

(Image Source: FamilySearch)

As for the clock tower? It's now in the steeple of the new chapel next door.

Clock towers in LDS chapels are not common. I'm aware of ones in the St. George Tabernacle (1871) and in the Cedar City First Ward (1931). The fact that all 3 are in the same geographical area makes me wonder if the Cedar City and Kanab clock towers were "inspired" by the St. George one, since St. George was the regional hub of the area, both economically and spiritually (with the temple). 

One thing I'm not totally aware of is the history of the bells with the clock tower. I'm assuming it had some type of bell that rang, as do the towers in St. George and Cedar City. Now, the clock tower is connected a 1997 Verdin Campana carillon, which plays bells on the hour (here, playing "I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go"):

(Source: Sarah U., LinkedIn)

It's a beautiful building with a fun history, and it's still right in the center of town.

Albuquerque (NM) Ward

I am unsure on the timing of the original and first chapel built in Albuquerque. It was likely in the 1940s or 1950s. 

(Image Source: Church History Library)

I came across a piece of history related to this building in faraway Bountiful. Lyle Hilton, a member of the ward, purchased a painting of Christ Blessing the Children from Isaac Loren Covington, who had done similar paintings for chapels across Utah, including Kanarraville, St. George, and Blanding.

When the building was later remodeled, the painting was ordered removed. Lyle Hilton took the painting and sent it to his son-in-law, who later placed it in the primary room of a chapel in east Bountiful.

It's always interesting to sometimes see how historic items in the Church have been dispersed across areas, especially with paintings. Paintings were often returned to members who had purchased or donated them when they were removed, or sometimes moved to other chapels. It means you sometimes encounter history in unexpected places.

Bountiful 4th Ward: Interior & Painting

 The interior of this building is fairly typical. The chapel has natural light on both sides and a simple design in the ceiling. The most notable feature is a large mural behind the pulpit.

The painting, done by W. Dean Belnap, is a reproduction of Christ with the Fishermen, by Ernst Zimmerman. Reproductions of famous paintings of Christ were very common in Latter-day Saint (and general Christian) art, beginning in the 1800s. 

W. Dean Belnap was a resident of Bountiful for most of his adult life, and was age 26 when the chapel was dedicated, although it's unknown if the painting was installed sometime after the chapel was dedicated. 

Bountiful 4th Ward

Built in the early 1950s and dedicated in 1952 by (at the time, Presiding Bishop) LeGrand Richards, the Bountiful 4th Ward is a fairly typical postwar Church building. However, it has some nice artwork in the chapel that I was able to document and will show in my next post.

Bountiful Tabernacle: Staircase Details

The stairs are reminiscent, albeit not as grand nor as tall, as the staircases in the St. George Tabernacle. They are one of the most beautiful parts of the tabernacle.

Bountiful Tabernacle: Interior Details

On the entablature above the windows are laurel wreaths with a ribbon across the bottom.

The balcony has some beautiful woodwork. The columns have some graining to make them appear marble, a common practice at the time.

The woodworking pattern along the bottom of the balcony railing is in a Greek key pattern; a classic decorative motif that has been around more thousands of years. While a common design, it has some symbolism referring to eternity or infinity.

While now connected to a larger building, the adobe walls of the tabernacle are apparent when you enter the chapel or look through the windows. The walls are a few feet thick.