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U.S. Capitol Visitor Center

The U.S. Capitol dome is visible Nov. 10 through the skylights in Emancipation Hall, part of the new Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) that was built underground on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The CVC, which comprises three levels of below ground floors, including new space for the House and Senate, is three quarters the size of the Capitol building itself and was built over six years.

Tim Sloan, AFP / Getty Images
The plaster model of the Statue of Freedom, which was used to cast the statue atop the U.S. Capitol Dome, is on display in the newly finished CVC.

Alex Wong, Getty Images
This photo shows a closeup of the head detail of the plaster model of the Statue of Freedom that is on display in the CVC. The excavation for the CVC required the removal of 65,000 truck loads of soil.

Alex Wong, Getty Images
Emancipation Hall in the CVC, which is 20,000 square feet, is nearly three times the size of the Capitol Rotunda. The center is a facility for processing tourists visiting the U.S. Capitol, and provides meeting spaces for the House and Senate.

Scott J. Ferrell, Congressional Quarterly / Getty Images
The CVC, which comprises three levels of below ground floors including new space for the House and Senate, is three quarters the size of the Capitol building itself.

Tim Sloan, AFP / Getty Images
The Exhibition Hall of the new CVC, which opens to the public on Dec. 2, 2008, is reflected in the helmet on the statue of U.S. astronaut John Swigert Jr.

Tim Sloan, AFP / Getty Images
The Exhibition Hall of the CVC contains a variety of displays, made up of both static and with video exhibits.

Tim Sloan, AFP / Getty Images
A photographer lines up a shot of an exhibit in the Exhibition Hall during a media tour of the newly finished CVC on Capitol Hill on Nov. 10, 2008.

Alex Wong, Getty Images
A video about the U.S. Senate is shown during a media tour of the CVC.

Alex Wong, Getty Images
A man passes by an exhibit that displays the U.S. Capitol dome, wiht the motto, "E Pluribus Unum" -- Latin for the phrase, "out of many, one" -- on the wall behind it.

Alex Wong, Getty Images

Votes(46)

Must See? 42% 58%

Recent Gallery Comments(6)

Showing: 1 - 6 of 6

#6 Gigs2do

04:30:20 Dec 3 2008 Report This

Finance it by attaching the appropriation to other bills over time and dig quietly.

#5 atgrl24

02:33:42 Dec 3 2008 Report This

After their "bail out", where did the government find that $621 Million?! They'll help themselves and the big corporations but not the people who put them where they are?! I say, we gave them their power... and we can take it away! They are still OUR representatives! DC already has enough monuments anyway...

#4 JanineStewart9

23:59:49 Dec 2 2008 Report This

Yes, it's definately a bunker. That was 621 million dollars of taxpayer money spent on making sure the senators and congressmen will be safe in the even of a terrorist attack. I have a feeling they didn't spend nearly that much making sure the rest of us will be safe.lol

#3 Zenci2

22:18:01 Dec 2 2008 Report This

I think this is not so much for tourism as it is for use as a bunker where the Senators and Congressmen can go to hide out from the (non-existent) "terrorists." The money spent to keep this sham going boggles my mind.

#2 Mitsusteve0427

21:11:05 Dec 2 2008 Report This

How can they spend that kind of money when there are people living on the streets? Family's being forced from there homes.....WTF...

#1 Mitsusteve0427

21:09:14 Dec 2 2008 Report This

What a HUGE waste of my tax dollars

Showing: 1 - 6 of 6

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U.S. Capitol Visitor Center

The plaster model of the Statue of Freedom, which was used to cast the statue atop the U.S. Capitol Dome, is on display in the newly finished CVC.

This photo shows a closeup of the head detail of the plaster model of the Statue of Freedom that is on display in the CVC. The excavation for the CVC required the removal of 65,000 truck loads of soil.

Emancipation Hall in the CVC, which is 20,000 square feet, is nearly three times the size of the Capitol Rotunda. The center is a facility for processing tourists visiting the U.S. Capitol, and provides meeting spaces for the House and Senate.

The CVC, which comprises three levels of below ground floors including new space for the House and Senate, is three quarters the size of the Capitol building itself.

The Exhibition Hall of the new CVC, which opens to the public on Dec. 2, 2008, is reflected in the helmet on the statue of U.S. astronaut John Swigert Jr.

The Exhibition Hall of the CVC contains a variety of displays, made up of both static and with video exhibits.

A photographer lines up a shot of an exhibit in the Exhibition Hall during a media tour of the newly finished CVC on Capitol Hill on Nov. 10, 2008.

A video about the U.S. Senate is shown during a media tour of the CVC.

A man passes by an exhibit that displays the U.S. Capitol dome, wiht the motto, "E Pluribus Unum" -- Latin for the phrase, "out of many, one" -- on the wall behind it.

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