Hey, Ralph

Serpentine has been used here in the Philadelphia area.  Perhaps most notably at the University of Pennsylvania's College Hall.  They did a big restoration project there a few years ago; as I recall they formulated some sort of composite for patching.  I haven't looked at it in a while, but as an incidental passerby, it looks appropriately green.  I have seen several rowhouses around here with Serpentine facades.  I'm sure there are plenty more that we can't see due to the stucco that folks have slapped over the stone.  They just stuccoed over one at 41st & Walnut here in Philly - home of a "Goodfellas" restaurant.  The food isn't bad, particularly for the price.  But I digress...

There are also some examples in Wilmington, Delaware.  There is a great serpentine church down there, which has since lost its serpentine parish house.   I think once you get out of the piedmont, the serpentine, like other stone, gets increasingly rare. I have to say, I like the stuff.  Although it's not the most stable material, it's a nice visual break from all the red brick around here.

 - Johnette

Original message --------

I suppose it's possible that anybody dumb
> enough to have used it (the stone) in the first place would have painted it
> soon after, but my guess is this stuff is in fact so hideous that it wasn't
> used; whether it's any good as a building stone, or workable enough to be
> affordable, God only knows. Have you, esteemed Sharpie, ever seen or heard of
> such
> stone used in New York, or anywhere else? Is it possible Edith was
> conducting a preemptive strike of some sort, or even just being literary as
> opposed to
> Strictly Historical? Maybe she saw the building in Chicago and it scared
> the snot (not the serpentinite) out of her.
>
> Ralph