Sather Gate

Sather Gate and Bridge
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Berkeley Landmark No. 157
Sather Gate in October 2006
Location	University of California campus in Berkeley
Area	0.2 acres (0.081 ha)
Built	1910
Architect	John Galen Howard
Architectural style	Classical Revival-Beaux-Arts
MPS	Berkeley, University of California MRA
NRHP reference No.	82004649
BERKL No.	157
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	March 25, 1982
Designated BERKL	February 25, 1991

Sather Gate is a prominent landmark separating Sproul Plaza from the bridge over Strawberry Creek, leading to the center of the University of California, Berkeley campus. The gate was donated by Jane K. Sather, a benefactor of the university, in memory of her late husband Peder Sather, a trustee of the College of California, which later became the University of California. It is California Historical Landmark No. 946 and No. 82004649 in the National Register of Historic Places.

History

Sather Gate with its metalwork removed in November 2008

Designed by John Galen Howard and built by Giovanni "John" Meneghetti in the Classical Revival Beaux-Arts style, Sather Gate was completed in 1910. Atop the gate are eight panels of bas-relief figures: four nude men representing the disciplines of law, letters, medicine, and mining, and four nude women representing the disciplines of agriculture, architecture, art, and electricity. They were sculpted by Professor Earl Cummins.

Originally, the gate served as the terminus of Telegraph Avenue, and marked the University's south entrance. (The circle in front of the gate served as a turning point for the trolleys coming from Oakland.) The University later expanded further south of Strawberry Creek, and the gate is now well separated from Berkeley's city streets by Sproul Plaza.

Sather Gate has undergone restoration beginning in October 2008 that focused on its bronze and steel metal work, which had deteriorated over time. During its restoration it remained open to pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Restoration of Sather Gate was completed in April 2009. Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., coordinated the restoration of Sather Gate; a 2010 Design Award recipient from the California Preservation Foundation.