Crypt in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol. Image from the public domain website of the w:Architect of the Capitol (http://www.aoc.gov/cc/capitol/crypt_1.cfm).

The large circular area on the first floor of the Capitol is called the Crypt. The forty Doric columns of brown stone surmounted by groined sandstone arches support the floor of the Rotunda. This center section of the building was completed in 1827 under the direction of the third Architect of the Capitol, w:Charles Bulfinch. The star in the center of the floor denotes the point from which the streets in Washington, D.C. are laid out and numbered.

Under the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol are the display cases that delineate architectural and historical events of the Capitol. Also on view are four models of the Capitol showing proposed designs as well as the building's present appearance.

This image is a work of an employee of the Architect of the Capitol, taken or made as part of that person's official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, all images created or made by the Architect of the Capitol are in the public domain in the United States.