Stone Beautiful

A large percentage of the village of Chestnut Hill (our neighborhood in the city of Philadelphia) is built of stone -- Wissahickon schist, to be precise, with flecks of mica that led to it commonly being called "silverstone." Much of the stone was quarried in the immediate vicinity (some quarries are still active), and chunks of schist are periodically burped up out of the earth. Working in stone requires special skill and a special eye. The number of qualified stoneworkers in the world tallies in the dozens. One of them is a man to whom we were led by word of mouth when we moved to Philadelphia: Martin Smith, whose handiwork has earned him a well-deserved profile in the Philadelphia Inquirer. We are the proud owners of a small Martin Smith wall and other projects. You can see more of his work here.