Seven highlights of the majestic (and infamous) US Capitol Building

As the 47th president celebrates his inauguration, here’s what to see at the epicentre of American democracy (and yes, the site of the attack on January 6, 2021).

You can tour the iconic US Capitol Building for free.Credit: Getty Images

National Statuary Hall Collection

Many bronze and marble statues are displayed in the Statuary Hall and throughout the US Capitol; each of the 50 states donates two statues. These include Amelia Earhart (Kansas), Thomas Edison (Ohio) and Rosa Parks (an exceptional Congress commission). The hall was the original House Chamber; bronze markers in the floor indicate where those members of Congress who later became presidents sat at their desks. It’s here, too, that presidential inauguration luncheons take place.

House and Senate chambers

Allow extra time to visit the galleries that overlook the wood-panelled chambers and soak up the spectacle of political players in action. The House chamber is particularly engaging at voting time when bells ring, members huddle and there’s the satisfying thwack (or 10) of the gavel. The Senate chamber, where each of the 100 senators has an assigned desk, is slightly more orderly. Here, cries of “yea” and “nay” determine a vote outcome. Visitors can obtain passes at the House and Senate appointment desks in the Visitor Centre. Bring international photo ID.

The Crypt

Inside the Crypt.Credit: The Architect of the Capitol

The Capitol Crypt and its 40 neoclassical Doric columns support the weight of the Rotunda. The marble compass, a “star”-shaped stone in the centre of the floor, is the starting point for D.C.’s streets and its system of numbers and alphabetised letters. Following tradition, on January 20, 2025, the president-elect will walk across the star before heading to the Capitol’s west front.

The Rotunda (Capitol dome)

A detail of “The Apotheosis of Washington”.Credit: The Architect of the Capitol

The Capitol Rotunda and the dome that crowns it are among the country’s most symbolic landmarks. The Rotunda’s walls are covered in paintings that represent pivotal moments in US history. Covering the dome, a magnificent fresco – the Apotheosis of Washington, a classical masterpiece by Constantino Brumidi, completed in 1865 – depicts President George Washington in his glory, ascending to the heavens accompanied by Liberty and Victory. The Rotunda is where notable Americans lie in State or Honour. Donald Trump’s inauguration was moved there because of the frigid weather.

Tour the Capitol

Take a tour.Credit: Thomas Hatzenbuhler

The only way to visit the Capitol is by a 45-minute tour (reserve online at visitthecapitol.gov, though limited same-day passes are available) – and they’re fascinating. Following a brief film, professional guides deftly guide groups through the Crypt, Statuary Hall and the Rotunda (and, if you’re lucky, the former Supreme Court chambers). For an in-depth experience, don’t miss one of the free daily specialty tours that cover Indigenous peoples in Capitol art, the American women’s suffrage movement, and Brumidi’s works (see below).

The Brumidi Corridors

The Brumidi Corridors.Credit: The Architect of the Capitol

If there’s one specialty tour to do, this is it. It gives you access into the extraordinary corridors of the building’s Senate extension that was constructed in the 1850s. Italian painter, Constantino Brumidi, who oversaw the decoration, based the works on Raphael’s loggia in the Vatican. Beautiful figures, motifs, plants and landscapes fill panels and lunettes. You pass committee rooms and discreet congressional officers’ spaces – a thrilling sense of being in the literal corridors of power.

Library of Congress – Thomas Jefferson Building

A pedestrian tunnel links the US Capitol and the Library of Congress, an Italian Renaissance-style building with allegorical mosaic murals, marble floors and a stunning reading room. Opened in 1897, it was originally established in 1800 in the Capitol building to provide reference books for Congress. After the initial collection was destroyed by fire, Thomas Jefferson sold his personal library to help resurrect the collection. These days, it’s one of the world’s largest library collections with more than 175 million books, recordings and images.

The writer travelled at her own expense. See visitthecapitol.gov