Phallic architecture
The Washington Monument in Washington D.C. is often seen as a prime example of phallic architecture and American masculinity. The towering monument, made of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss, it is both the world's tallest stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk, standing according to the National Park Service. Construction of the monument began in 1848, was halted from 1854 to 1877, and was completed in 1884. In a "Journal" review, dated 17 October 1911, Arnold Bennett said of the monument, "Saw Washington monument. Phallic. Appalling. A national catastrophe – only equalled by the Albert Memorial. Tiny doll-like people waiting to go into it." Dan Burstein says of it, "Speaking of sex symbols, there is no more phallic symbol in existence than the Washington Monument, and the Capitol dome can be viewed as breastlike." James Webb used a metaphor to praise the "uplift[ing]" power of the Washington Monument as a white phallus, "piercing the air like a bayonet". In the futuristic film "Hardwired", set in the United States where everything noteworthy is commercialized, the Washington Monument is used as a giant Trojan condoms billboard.
Post-presidency of George Washington
After his death 1799, Congress had promised to make a marble memorial for Washington in Washington D.C., however, Congress did not honor this pledge until 1876. Washington's first memorial was created in Maryland in 1827. In 1831, Washington's cousin Major Lawrence Lewis built a new vault, that Washington had requested 31 years earlier. Washington's body was finally interred in a marble sarcophagus in 1837. After a public out cry, the "Washington National Monument Society" was formed in 1833, and began a private building of the Washington Monument. The project was abandoned in 1854 due to lack of funding. During the nation's centennial, Congress, under President Ulysses S. Grant, took over the funding and building of the Washington Monument, that was completed in 1884, and formerly dedicated in 1885.