Head of School Matt Walter with Jon Yarnall with a Nakashima chair in the Cortazzo Building

In a previous report (Sept 17-24, 2023), we noted that Jon Yarnall, son-in-law of George Nakashima, had made a weekend visit to Portsmouth Abbey following a nephew’s wedding in Newport in August, 2023, taking a leisurely tour of the monastery and the school. It was not his first visit, but he was curious to see again the many hand-crafted pieces of furniture and other objects made by the late Mr. Nakashima, the noted Japanese-American craftsman, as far back as 1960, the year that the church was completed and consecrated. Of particular interest were the four matching altars of cherry originally commissioned for the upper gallery chapels of the Abbey Church. Each one has the requisite marble altar stone still embedded in the top containing a relic of the saint or saints to whom each chapel is dedicated. Each was constructed for frequent use for individual Masses offered by our monks, in the pre-conventual Mass days leading up to the Second Vatican Council.

l. to r.: Jeff Costa, Luis Raposo, Peter Cahill, James Pulice, and Tim Leary transfer the altarIt was the first indication I had that there should have been four Nakashima altars upstairs but, at the time of Jon’s visit, there were only three. The nagging thought was that somewhere on this 500+ acre campus, the fourth altar was hiding in plain sight. A search was stymied because other projects took priority and precedence during the intervening winter months. But last spring, with the help of Emanuel (Manny) Almeida, Head of Housekeeping at the School, the altar was finally located. Who better to know the ins and outs and nooks and crannies of the campus buildings than Manny and his housekeeping staff? When the altar was finally discovered in the first-floor common room of the 1930 St. Benet’s House on the lower campus, it became clear that its removal from the church many years, maybe decades, earlier had constituted nothing nefarious. It had thankfully not been repurposed as a kitchen island, a chopping block, or a stand for a microwave oven and bagel toaster. In fact, it was in the common room for use in House Masses – Fr. Paschal Scotti just celebrated a House Mass there on Thursday, September 26, but on a different altar. The Nakashima altar, found literally swathed in tablecloths and altar cloths protecting it from scratches, needed little more than a good polishing to be restored.

The next step was returning the extremely heavy altar to the church’s upper gallery. Tina Grilli, our Facilities Manager, was contacted (during the summer months when the campus is mostly empty of students), and on September 10 a crew of five completed the job. When informed a week later that her father’s four matching altars were once again reunited on the upstairs gallery level of the Abbey Church, Mira Nakashima-Yarnall, wife of Jon, exclaimed in an e-mail: “Oh, my goodness! How wonderful you found the missing altar and had it restored to its original spot in the chapel at Portsmouth, thanks to those strong young men!” The next time you are inside the Abbey Church, it’s worth a climb up the staircase to the upper level to admire the craftsmanship. It may not be as exhilarating as a climb up the inside of the wind turbine, but you will have before you a scene of beauty.
Presider’s Chair (1960)If you have visited the church recently, you will also have noticed another recent addition to the church furnishings, this one of a much more recent vintage. A new presider’s chair in solid mahogany graces the sanctuary, one designed by Abbot Michael Brunner. It replaces the 100-year-old Italian Renaissance-style armchair which had held pride of place in the same spot, first used at the dedication of the Abbey Church in 1960. Thought to have been from the original furnishings of the 1860 Manor House when acquired by Leonard Sargent, it also appears in the iconic photograph from a tea in the Manor House in 1942, occupied by the headmaster’s wife, Frances Brady, who pours the tea. Over the summer, our new chair was installed, the work of Luis Raposo, its fresh finish for weeks lending a distinctive accent to the aroma of our incense. The mahogany was stained to blend effectively with the woodwork of the Belluschi church and has seamlessly found its place in the sanctuary. A final note, for any budding liturgists, on the meaning of “presider’s chair”: “The chair of the priest celebrant must signify his office of presiding over the gathering and of directing the prayer. Any appearance of a throne, however, is to be avoided. It is appropriate that, before being put into liturgical use, the chair be blessed according to the rite described in the Roman Ritual.” (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 310)
Peter Cahill and Luis Raposo with new Presider’s Chair

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Br. Sixtus Roslevich serves as Director of Oblates. He also has taken a very “hands-on” interest in the art collection of the monastery, bringing to light many of the unused or hidden pieces in our collection.