Soaring directly above the High Altar is Grace Cathedral's central spire, or "flêche" (say "flesh"). A fleche is simply a special type of church or cathedral spire, smaller and more decorative than massive tower-top spires such as those at Chartres or Salisbury Cathedral. The French word fleche (say flesh) means "feathered arrow." Its roots are evident in words such as "fletcher," a craftsman who made arrows by attaching feathers to their tails. These feathers help to focus an arrow's flight, just as feathers aid "fledglings" in their first flights.

Originally designed by cathedral architect Lewis Hobart, our fleche is steel covered with stamped lead-coated copper detail. Hobart's design blends elements from Paris's Notre Dame and Amiens Cathedrals, both being 19th century reconstructions of earlier, and simpler, late medieval lead-covered wooden designs that were destroyed by lightning.

Take in the QuickTime VR panoramic view from atop the Grace Cathedral spire!

The fleche stump stood unfinished from 1933 to 1963 when the two-unit lantern and shaft were finally installed. A huge crane was rolled into the parking lot (now the central courtyard) and the pieces were raised into position on March 18, 1963, after being blessed by Bishop Pike, and watched by a crowd or dignitaries.

Our fleche may be the tallest Gothic-style fleche in the United States, rising 117' 5" from the roof bridge to an elevation of 540' 5" -- over 242 feet from the courtyard below. Access to the fleche is via a small ladder in the catwalks directly above the cathedral sanctuary. Around the perimeter of the lower lantern are eight projecting grotesques (not true gargoyles because they don't double as drainpipes).

These eight wyverns, two-legged winged dragons, would have served in medieval times as sort of holy pit-bulls, symbolically warding off plague, fire, and storms from the cathedral and its surrounding town.

Various shots from the construction on the fleche.

An incident of interest was the first scaling of the fleche on August 11, 1979. Rock climber Edwin Drummond scaled the fleche free-hand -- without any ropes or safety devices -- to protest the allegedly wrongful 1972 murder conviction of Black Panther member Elmer "Geronimo" Pratt. To the cross shaft, Drummond attached a banner reading "Remember Biko, Wake Up Brown, Free Geronimo Pratt." He hung just below in a hammock, releasing balloons with protest letters attached. A maid in an adjacent apartment house was the first to spot him. Drummond was coaxed down after a few hours, and later did some important repair work on the upper less-accessible parts of the cathedral, including installation of the south tower clock. Geronimo Pratt is now free.

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