Glessner House datestone, located in the north facing gable at the east end of the building. The two stones, showing A.D. and 1886, are set midway between the chimney top above, and a large arch over the third floor window for the butler’s apartment below.
The stones would have been set into place in November 1886, when Frances Glessner noted in her journal that the exterior stone work was nearly complete. A small Greek cross is located to either side of the year 1886, but the most interesting detail is the stylized A.D. above. As was the case with architect H. H. Richardson’s own monogram (which can be seen carved into the facade over the central second floor windows), it is created symmetrically, in this instance by placing the central “A” between the letter “D” shown in mirror images to either side.
The central A, with its broad top, reminds one of how the German engraver Albrecht Durer drew his first initial. The placement of a central dot in each of the Ds has led some to refer to the design as the stylized face of an owl, although this is not documented by Richardson or the Glessners. If that is true, perhaps it is subtle reference to the architect, as it bears some similarity to the face of a Richardson’s owl (cryptoglaux funerea richardsoni), a small boreal owl named after the Scottish naturalist Sir John Richardson (1787-1865), and found in the northern parts of North America.