First Church of Christ, Scientist
Bernard Maybeck, Architect, 1910
Roof replacement, accessibility, and seismic improvements: Architectural Resources Group and Degenkolb Engineers, 2007
City of Berkeley Landmark
designated 1975
Maybeck’s masterpiece is an Arts & Craft fusion of Romanesque, early Christian Gothic and Japanese architectural influences. Constructed with common industrial materials – metal, concrete, and glass – the design expresses permanence and integrity in design and structure. Massive diagonally crossed wood trusses supported by four fluted concrete columns allow unobstructed views from the congregation to the Reader stands. Skylights, translucent hammered glass window walls, and indirect lighting create a connection between the interior space and adjacent landscape. The Sunday School along the eastern side of the main church was added in 1929 by Maybeck in association with Henry Gutterson.
2007
Marker is at the intersection of Dwight Way and Bowditch Street, on the left when traveling east on Dwight Way.
Courtesy hmdb.org
