Weather-beaten tomb has served the nation well
The Rocky
Published November 26, 2007 at 12:05 a.m.
A polite but nonetheless intense dispute in the nation's capital concerns a large stone, a block of marble 16 feet long, 9 feet wide and 11 feet high. The marble is showing the effects of having sat unprotected in the open for 76 years. It has two long, deep cracks, one over 28 feet long, the other over 16 feet, that will eventually go all the way through the stone.
The dispute is whether to replace it or patch it as best as possible. The answer might be simple except that this block of marble is the monument over the Tomb of the Unknowns, guarded night and day, 2 4/7, by elite members of the Army's Old Guard. The changing of that guard has become a moving, must-see stop for Washington visitors.
There are pros and cons to what to do with the monument. Repairing the marble would require a distracting process of grouting, regrouting and polishing, none of which would permanently stop the deterioration.
Replacing the monument with an identical copy, done in identical marble, might seem the more logical course, but it doesn't take into account the tremendous public sentiment and respect for that simple, weather-hallowed block of stone.
To use an analogy frequently invoked, we did not throw out the Liberty Bell when it cracked. It's probably ascribing too much to what is basically just a large rock, but in its own way this weathered block of marble has served our country well.
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November 26, 2007
11:39 a.m.
Suggest removal
elrojo writes:
It seems that Americans only want "new" things and older things are routinely thrown away. The Tomb and the Monument are National Treasures, repair the Monument!!
December 3, 2007
7:51 a.m.
Suggest removal
deepearth writes:
Leave it where it is! Like so many of our beloved Veterans, it has served our country and continues to protect our fallen unknowns. Like our veterans it has become weathered and old but still stands for honor and devotion. It may be cracked but it is not broken!