Art: Nine-Sided Nonesuch

Chicago motorists were heading north last week to see one of the most fantastic pieces of architecture in the U.S.—the continent's first Bahá'i Temple of Worship (see cut), on Lake Michigan's shores in suburban Wilmette, Ill.

The exterior ornamentation of the domed, 180-ft. Temple, a mélange of ancient styles sparkling with tons of white quartz crystals, was newly completed after eleven years' labor. Nine-sided, it stands in a nine-acre park, is supported by nine concrete piers sunk 90 feet below the water level of nearby Lake Michigan.

Nine is of great significance in the...

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