Capitol Dome

Yesterday was a long, but good day in the city. I went to a book launch event and had a great time. But more on that in a post this weekend! Now I’ve got a lot of housekeeping things to take care of (literally and figuratively – laundry and cooking but also blog work).

While scrolling through photos on my phone I came across my photos from my trip to Washington, DC during the holidays. I saw these photos I took in the Capitol Building – in the rotunda. They are shots looking up at the fresco painted on ceiling of the dome.

I vaguely remember our tour guide saying that the painting is larger than a basketball court! I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’s an interesting fun fact if it’s true.

If you’re interested, the painting is called The Apotheosis of Washington. The painting contains a lot of symbolism and I’m not going to get in to the whole thing, but you can read about it (here) if you want to know all about it.

Basically:

• Washington is draped in purple which is a royal color
• Flanked by the Goddess Victoria and Goddess of Liberty
• 13 maidens form a circle between Liberty and Victory representing the 13 colonies
• 6 scenes line the perimeter representing a national concept allegorically: war, science, marine, commerce, mechanics, and agriculture.

Anyway, I thought it was an interesting Flashback Friday to share. And if you know if that fun fact about the painting being larger than a basketball court is true, let me know!