Architectural molding fragment from Charleston, South Carolina

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

A molding fragment from Charleston, South Carolina. The fragment is from a horizontal architectural element of a building. The fragment’s body is composed of two layers: cement at the back and plaster towards the decorative surface. There is a short metal wire protruding from the cement one side. The decorative surface is a plaster washed with medium and light gray paints. There are small spots of red paint visible on the top center of the bottom molding and in the hallow above. Most of the back of the fragment is covered in stucco except for one exposed corner. The stucco surface bears the impressions of seven bricks. The fragment’s profile is thin at the top and widens at the center and bottom. At the top of the fragment is a three-quarters round molding above a wide cavetto that ends in a beak molding. At the bottom of the fragment is a trefoil molding.

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