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ArchDC Winter 2018.qxp_Winter 2018 11/27/18 9:33 AM Page 19

Columns capitals
prior to restoration.

Column capital with
damaged ornamentation.

Column capital during
paint removal.

Capitol dome after restoration. Completed column capital.

Senator McCain’s flag-draped coffin, those visitors were experiencing that problem, known as flash rusting, workers focused on one
a space that had recently benefitted from a major renovation. small part of the dome at a time, removing the old paint and
The $60-million Capitol dome restoration project began in quickly priming the exposed surface with a rust inhibitor before
2014, with the erection of the highly visible exterior scaffolding moving on to the next small patch. The replacement ornaments,
that many readers will recall, and was completed—on schedule including decorative acorns, grape clusters, and flowers, were cast
and under budget—in mid-November 2016, in time for the by Historical Arts and Casting, a Utah-based metal-fabricating
January 2017 inauguration. The dome had last been restored in firm run by three brothers who were inspired by the work of their
1959-60, but the newly completed project, which repaired and late father, a noted restoration architect.
restored both the dome’s exterior and the rotunda, is the most The repaired and restored exterior was given three coats of
comprehensive and detailed restoration project to have been high-performance sealer in a slightly cream-toned color known as
undertaken on the dome since it was completed in 1866. Dome White. The new three-layered surface treatment, which used
The project was overseen by the office of the Architect of the more than 1,200 gallons of the sealer, is expected to stand up to the
Capitol (AOC), headed by Architect of the Capitol Stephen T. elements for 12 to 16 years.
Ayers, FAIA, CCM, LEED AP.Arlington-based Hoffmann Work on the Rotunda, whose design is intended to recall that
Architects, a firm that specializes in the rehabilitation of building of the ancient Pantheon in Rome, began in July 2015, and included
exteriors, worked closely with AOC on the project in its role as repairing ironwork, upgrading electrical and mechanical systems,
architect of record. installing new lighting, removing hazardous materials, and giving
Work on the outside of the 8.9 million-pound cast iron dome, the interior surface of the dome a new paint scheme. Artists
much of it done painstakingly by hand, involved removing all 14 restored damaged portions of the frieze.
layers of paint that had accumulated over the last 150 years, Analysis of the old paint layers on the inside of the dome
repairing about 1,300 cracks, leaks, and patches of corrosion, identified three previous paint schemes dating to 1866 (the original
repairing and replacing the dome’s 108 wood-framed windows pattern), 1906, and 1974. The new 2016 scheme is a hybrid of the
and more than 100 damaged or lost ornaments and decorations, 1866 pattern, which was considered too dark, and the 1906 pattern,
installing fall-protection and bird-deterrent systems, and repainting which had little contrast. Applying the new hybrid scheme
the dome. required about 500 gallons of paint.
The dome’s cast iron is an alloy of iron, carbon, and silicon The work done in the restoration project as a whole is
that rusts within eight hours of being exposed to the air. To avoid expected to last for 75 to 100 years.

ON COMMON GROUND 19