Egyptian Revival

Circa 1835 – 1890

The Egyptian Revival style, which grew out of the interest in the architecture of Egypt, was strictly an ornamental style and did not consist of a specific type of building. It was found mostly on public buildings in the form of massive columns and imposing façades with Egyptian stylized motifs applied. These civic buildings were designed to be large and imposing; Egyptian Revival was often used for courthouses, prisons, and other civic buildings as well as in cemeteries for mausoleums and other large monuments. In the case of domestic architecture, the Egyptian Revival style was much simpler than their public counterparts and was usually limited to the application of large flared columns onto Italianate or Greek Revival homes. These large columns were constructed to resemble the columns that had been found on the large temples of Ancient Egypt, the most common form being a column that resembled a bundle of reeds tied together.

Rarely was this style used in the Southeastern U.S. but it was prominent in uptown Charlotte, N.C. in use for years as the Masonic Lodge. The columns were saved and used as an entrance to the Dave Lyle Blvd., in Rock Hill, S.C.