Martin Entrance Foyer
McLean Foyer of Meditation
John Leddy-Jones Research Hall
Hankamer Treasure Room
Austin Moore-Elizabeth Barrett Browning Salon
Belew Scholars' Room
Martin Entrance Foyer Modeled after the fifteenth-century baptistry doors by Ghiberti in Florence, these solid bronze doors, weighing three-quarters of a ton each, feature ten bas-relief panels repeated on both sides that embody themes from ten of Browning's poems. The doors, sculpted by Robert Weinman of New York, provide not only an entrance into the building, but also an introduction into the rich world of the poetry of Robert Browning (1812 - 1889) and his poet-wife, Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861). Busts of the Brownings; their son, Pen (1849 - 1912); and their close friend, John Kenyon, greet you at the entrance.
The focal point of the room is the life-sized portrait of Robert Browning done by Pen Browning shortly before his father's death. Pen also styled its magnificent frame of bursting pomegranates. It hangs above the dais displaying Browning's desk and chair used in his study in London.
On the outside wall are three magnificent double stained glass windows that were created by Charles J. Connick Associates, Boston. These windows represent three of Robert Browning's best short poems: on the left, "Rabbi Ben Ezra" ("Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be"), "Abt Vogler" ("On the earth the broken arcs; in the heaven a perfect round"), and, on the right, "Saul" ("Tis not what man Does which exalts him, but what man Would do"). With 62 stained glass windows, the Armstrong Browning Library contains the world's largest collection of secular stained glass.
Throughout the Armstrong Browning Library building, and especially prevalent in the Martin Entrance Foyer, is an artistic motif of bells and pomegranates. In addition to the frame surrounding the large portrait of Browning, bells and pomegranates surround the bas-relief panels of the bronze entrance doors, are prominent in the stained glass windows, appear in the molded plaster ceiling, and are inlaid in a striking bronze border on the terrazzo floor. The use of this motif was inspired by a series of poems by Robert Browning, published early in his career in eight pamphlets, which he entitled Bells and Pomegranates, a name symbolizing the music and meaning of poetry. The religious associations of the term are found in Exodus, where the border of the high priest's robe is described as being decorated with bells and pomegranates.
McLean Foyer of Meditation The design of the McLean Foyer of Meditation takes its inspiration from Leighton House in London. The original home, an eclectic composite by pre-Raphaelite artist Frederick Leighton, features a domed room called The Arab Hall. The Foyer of Meditation at 40' x 40' is larger and more subdued in effect except for its five-foot dome finished in 23-carat gold leaf. A two-ton bronze chandelier hangs from the center of the dome over a mahogany table, which is an enlarged reproduction of one Pen Browning had in the Palazzo Rezzonico.
Three windows arching up to 26 feet complete the palatial atmosphere of the room. Their filigree ironwork adds an exquisite touch to the room while variegated tones of stained glass subdue the brightness of the sun's rays. Tall columns of red levanto marble flank each window while an Italian garden scene painted on canvas gives the room its meditative quality.
"The Cloister of the Clasped Hands" is the name commonly assigned to the alcove just under the balcony of the Foyer of Meditation. Popular as a place for marriage proposals and weddings, its walls are illustrated with the poems that Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote of their love for one another. On one side, Sonnet 43, the most famous of Elizabeth's Sonnets from the Portuguese, begins, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways." On the opposite wall is an excerpt from Robert Browning's Invocation from The Ring and the Book where he pours out his feelings for his "lyric Love, half-angel and half-bird, And all a wonder and a wild desire." Although the poets spoke of their inseparableness even after death, it is remarkable that not a single contemporary photograph or portrait is known to exist showing both poets together. Ironically, neither are they buried together. Robert is interred in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey, while Elizabeth is buried in the English Protestant Cemetery in Florence. Their friend, Frederick Leighton, whose house inspired the Foyer of Meditation, designed Elizabeth's tomb.
The Cloister also houses a bronze cast of the poets' clasped hands made by American artist and personal friend of the Brownings, Harriet Hosmer. Over the clasped hands is a fictitious illustration of the Brownings' courtship painted by John Carroll for the Eaton Paper Co. The company was promoting the power of letter-writing, since the Brownings had carried on most of their courtship through the mail before meeting in person. The plaque beneath the painting contains a line from one of Robert's letters, "Dear, dear Ba [Elizabeth's nickname]...I believe that, when I have been your husband for years...if I were separated from you for a day and a letter came...my heart would move to it just as it now does." The painting was a gift from the Eaton Paper Company.
John Leddy-Jones Research Hall
Through the double doors you discover a quiet and beautiful place for Baylor students to study. The atmosphere of the John Leddy-Jones Research Hall is one of dignity and charm combined with utility, created in part by the rare black walnut paneling and the Gothic oak floor in the Marie Antoinette design from the Versailles Palace.
The stained glass windows around the outside of the room, created by Jacoby Studios, Saint Louis, Missouri, illustrate ten of Robert Browning's poems. The three windows on the interior wall and inside the Sturdivant Alcove were created by Haskins Studio, Rochester, New York, in 1924. They were moved to the Armstrong Browning Library from the original Browning Room in Carroll Library, Baylor's main library until 1968. The alcove contains several Pied Piper illustrations. Beautifully carved bookcases contain theses and dissertations on the Brownings and biographies of people from the Brownings' era.
Among the many portraits of Robert Browning in this room are two painted by the poet's son, Pen Browning, along with a companion portrait of Browning's friend, Joseph Milsand, also done by Pen. Among the art pieces on the walls are bronze likenesses of Browning, an oil painting of his sister, Sarianna, and a copy of Guercino's painting of The Guardian Angel. It is always quiet here and students can work in an atmosphere of learning reminiscent of an ancient college or university library from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday, and on Saturday mornings from 9:00 am to noon. Those specially interested in 19th-century literature can request books from the Library's comprehensive collections. Since the Library is primarily a research center, all requested items are used in the Belew Scholars' Room on the third floor.
Hankamer Treasure Room
As its name suggests, the Hankamer Treasure Room houses many special items and is an ideal room for browsing our changing and continuous exhibitions. The Gothic oak floors are the Marie Antoinette design, and the plaster and wood ceiling is hand-painted in the Italian Renaissance style. The eleven stained glass windows, created by Charles J. Connick Associates, illustrate Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning poems. Five of the paintings are from the Samuel H. Kress Study Collection, several are likenesses of Browning, and one is a Madonna that was owned by the poets. A clock that served three generations of the Browning family sits atop a bookcase on the long wall of the room; the bookcases in this room are filled with biographies of persons who lived during the 19th century.
Carved on the chimney of the monumental "blue stone" fireplace is a replica of a Browning coat of arms used by the poet. A handsome table sits in the middle of the room on a Hamadan oriental rug (c. 1925) while a restored John Broadwood and Sons grand piano (c. 1870) stands near the fireplace. At the entrance is a chair and desk once owned by the Brownings.
Austin Moore-Elizabeth Barrett Browning Salon Location: Third Floor
Elizabeth Barrett Browning is possibly best known for her authorship of the forty-four Sonnets from the Portuguese, five of which are represented here in stained glass. Her writing table stands near the center of the room and other mementos are on display.
The two large, mahogany cabinets, on either side of an ornate mirror, provide storage space for music composed to accompany the poems of the Brownings. Above the right cabinet is a pastel likeness of Elizabeth, drawn by Eliza Fox-Bridell in 1859.
The needlepoint on the chairs carries the "Bells and Pomegranates" design. Elizabeth Barrett's afghan pattern is used in the large afghan on the divan and in the miniature afghan in the reproduction of the scene from The Barretts of Wimpole Street. Opposite the miniature scene is a portrait by Alexander Clayton of Katharine Cornell (who played the part of Elizabeth in the play).
Hanging on the walls are other portraits of Elizabeth Barrett Browning by Sir William Charles Ross, Edmund Havell, and Valentine Prinsep.
Bust
Study
Alexander Munro
Pen Browning
Bust
Robert and Elizabeth
by Lehmann
by Thomas Woolner
by Pen Browning
by Guercino
by Charles Doyle
by Fanny Haworth
Clock
Chair
Italian School
by Fox-Bridell
by Phoebe Conrad
by Fannie Haworth
from Casa Guidi
by Alexander Clayton
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Baylor University Waco, Texas 76798 1-800-BAYLOR-U