{"id":10336,"date":"2013-06-21T22:00:17","date_gmt":"2013-06-22T02:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=10336"},"modified":"2024-12-04T17:53:55","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T22:53:55","slug":"looking-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=10336","title":{"rendered":"Looking Up"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"23<\/a>Linda Burton posting from Lincoln, Nebraska <\/i>\u2013 \u201cSit around this circle and look up,\u201d Jamison the Tour Guide instructed the kids. They plopped to the floor and so did he, right in their midst. The rest of us kept standing; an appropriate entourage of parents, one grandma, a couple from Germany, and me. We exchanged glances, acknowledging our inability to gracefully plop; then grandma and I found a bench. Meanwhile, the kids kept looking up, and up, as Jamison pointed and told stories. \u201cSee the man behind the plow?\u201d he said, and directed everyone to look at a large mural on the wall high above our heads. The children nodded. \u201cThe grass is \"23<\/a>very thick,\u201d he explained, \u201cand he is digging up sections of it with his plow, and stacking the sections. Do you know what he did with the large sections of grass, or sod?\u201d They did not know. \u201cThey built houses,\u201d he said joyfully, \u201csod houses! They stacked it up and made houses from it. Now, why do you think they used sod instead of trees?\u201d The children looked at each other, and looked again at the mural. They did not know the answer. \u201cWe have trees in Lincoln now,\u201d he continued, \u201cbut many years ago, there were no trees, just prairie grass. No trees! Somebody planted all the trees you see today. There was no wood to build with, so the \"23<\/a>settlers used what they had. And that was sod.\u201d There was a group \u201cohh\u201d from the children as they thought about that. Jamison continued with the beginnings of Nebraska, pictured right there in the vestibule of the capitol. The capitol\u2019s art is \u201cthemed\u201d from beginning to end, reflecting the values of the people of Nebraska. There\u2019s hushed behavior here; the building feels cathedral-like; especially looking up. <\/p>\n

The grandma and I kept finding benches as Jamison led the children from one dramatic scene \"23<\/a>to the next; soaring arches lifted our vision to the very top. \u201cI can\u2019t believe how they did all this,\u201d grandma said. I couldn\u2019t believe it either; the rest of this post is straight from their brochure; I didn\u2019t dare leave anything out.<\/p>\n

The Vestibule.<\/i> The theme here is Gifts of Nature to Man on the Plains<\/i>. The sun, an important gift of nature, is represented in the top of the dome, the chandelier and the large floor mosaic. The outer border of the dome contains the inscription: Behold they come as householders, bringing earth\u2019s first fruits, rejoicing that the soil hath rewarded their labors with the abundance of its seasons<\/i>. The pendentives surrounding the dome portray the four seasons of agriculture. The arches around the dome are filled with native fauna of Nebraska. The three large wall murals were painted by James Penney and added in 1964. In sunset colors Penney painted The Homesteader\u2019s Campfire, The First Furrow<\/i>, and The House Raising<\/i>.<\/p>\n

\"23<\/a>The Foyer<\/i>. The theme of the Foyer is the Life of Man<\/i>. On the floor are three mosaics which represent the Earth, The Spirit of the Soil, The Spirit of Vegetation<\/i>, and The Spirit of Animal Life<\/i>. The three medallions in the ceiling represent Traditions of the Past, Life of the Present<\/i>, and Ideas of the Future<\/i>. The window arches contain figures to represent the activities of society: Family, School, Recreation, Reflection, Beauty, and Truth. The four inward-facing ceiling panels symbolize Law, Labor, Public Spirit, and Religion. The six large mosaics on the walls were commissioned to celebrate Nebraska’s Centennial in 1967. They are: The United State Survey, The Blizzard of 1888, Tree Planting, The Coming of the Railroad, The Spirit of Nebraska<\/i>, and The Building of the Capitol<\/i>. (Jamison explained the concept of “abstract art” to the children, telling the story of the schoolteacher who saved the children in the blizzard of 1888 by leading them out of the storm, see above.)<\/p>\n

\"23<\/a>The Rotunda<\/i>. The floor plan of the Capitol is a cross within a square; the Rotunda, 112 feet tall, is located at the intersection of the arms of the cross in the center of the building. The theme of the Rotunda is Virtues of the State<\/i>. The eight winged figures in the dome form a celestial rose representing civic and sacred virtues: Temperance, Courage, Justice, Wisdom, Magnanimity, Faith, Hope, and Charity. The large marble floor mosaic in the center of the Rotunda floor is Earth as the Life-giver<\/i> and surrounding her are symbols of Water, Fire, Air, and Soil. Prehistoric life of Nebraska is shown in the border surrounding the elements.<\/p>\n

The inscriptions at the springing line of the room’s vaults are taken from Aristotle’s Politics:<\/p>\n