Victor Herbert Crane

Victor Herbert Crane was a visionary architect active in the 19th Century, responsible for the reconstruction and modernisation of Blackmouth following the fire of 1814. The city's monumental architecture was born in Crane's vision and carried forward into the modern day by his students and imitators.

Art

Crane developed an interest in art toward the end of his life, particularly sculptures and mosaics in a style similar to but predating art nouveau. None of his works survive in public, though some may have survived in private collections. His most notable piece was the Roue Street Memorial, unveiled in 1876 as part of the opening of the Roue Street Subway Station, its design intended to memorialise all those lives lost in the first century of the USA. It stood in Roue Street until the station closed in 1989, after which it passed into a private collection. Photos of the Memorial show an image of a great yew tree with subtle coiling details in the background, suggestive of serpentine shapes, all made from fine triangular tiles. Comments from its unveiling mention that it was so expertly arranged that a viewer could almost see them move as the light caught them.

Secrets of Victor Herbert Crane

• See Blackmouth Unveiled#Victor Herbert Crane for the knowledge gathered by the Awakened about Crane and his creations.

Chronicles

Crane's works have appeared several times during chronicles set in Blackmouth.

• Beneath Cold Boughs: The Stone Tree in Willowgate Arcade was believed to be an original Victor Herbert Crane piece, preventing the demolition of the arcade as part of the Ormwood Development Project. New research that proved the Tree was not created by Crane cleared the way for its removal and the demolition of the arcade.
• Under A Killing Moon: The tree-framed dolmen mosaic at the heart of the locus in Dekker Street Station, referred to by the werewolf pack called the Wardens as the Gate of Silence, is a Crane work.