Rotunda Interior Restoration Project Overview

The Rotunda is among the most recognizable and hallowed spaces within all of America’s public buildings. The Rotunda is used for important ceremonial events, such as the lying in state of eminent citizens, the awarding of Congressional Gold Medals and the dedication of works of art.

Due to the extensive exterior damage on the Capitol Dome, which covers the Rotunda, water has leaked through more than 1,000 cracks, damaging paint, cast iron, stone and decorative elements.

The current exterior Dome Restoration will repair the cracks in the Dome and is scheduled for completion in late 2015.

The focus of the Rotunda Restoration will be to remove hazardous materials (such as lead paint), restore ironwork, upgrade electrical and mechanical systems, install new lighting and repaint it to historically appropriate colors. This effort is planned to begin in late summer 2015 and be complete prior to the Presidential Inauguration in January 2017. 

Below: The Apotheosis of Washington in the eye of the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitolwas painted in the true fresco technique by Constantino Brumidi in 1865. Brumidi (1805-1880) was born and trained in Rome and had painted in the Vatican and Roman palaces before emigrating to the United States in 1852. A master of creating the illusion of three-dimensional forms and figures on flat walls, Brumidi painted frescoes and murals throughout the Capitol from 1855 until his death.