Tobacco Column Capitals
Sixteen columns in the small Senate rotunda of the U.S. Capitol feature tobacco capitals designed by Benjamin H. Latrobe, then modeled and carved by Francisco Iardella.
Architect of the Capitol employees are responsible for the care and preservation of more than 300 works of art, architectural elements, landscape features and more.
Browse our pieces below or learn more about the artists, collections and subjects.
Trenton, 1784
In November and December 1784 the Congress met in the French Arms tavern in Trenton, New Jersey.
Tribonian, Relief Portrait
Tribonian (c. 500-547) Byzantine jurist. Head of the commission that codified the laws under Justinian I.
Ulysses S. Grant Statue
This statue depicts American general and president Ulysses S. Grant in the uniform of the Union army. On his shoulders are four stars denoting him as "General of the Army of the United States," a rank that he was the first to hold.
Wade Hampton Statue
This statue of Wade Hampton was given to the National Statuary Hall Collection by South Carolina in 1929.
War and Peace
Marble allegorical statues "War" and "Peace" flank the East Central Front entrance to the U.S. Capitol. Plaster models may be seen in the vestibule area outside the east door of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.
Washington's Farewell Address, 1796
In his farewell address at the end of his second term as president, George Washington urged America, "Observe good faith and justice toward all nations.
Washington's Inauguration, 1789
George Washington was sworn in as the nation's first president on April 30, 1789, on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York
Washington, 1800
Only the north (Senate) wing of the U.S. Capitol Building was ready for the Congress by 1800. As construction continued on the rest of the building, this wing accommodated the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the district courts.
Washington, 1814
In August 1814, during the War of 1812, invading British troops burned the U.S. Capitol and other buildings in Washington. That fall, Congress met in the Patent Office building (now the National Portrait Gallery/Smithsonian American Art Museum).
Washington, 1815
Only the north (Senate) wing of the U.S. Capitol Building was ready for the Congress by 1800. As construction continued on the rest of the building, this wing accommodated the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the district courts.
Washington, 1829
The U.S. Capitol Building and Grounds were first completed by Charles Bulfinch in 1829. This image shows the building's East Front.