Columns of the Rotunda

 

 

The columns are scagliola, which is a man-made marble. This style comes from Italy and it is considered a lost art. The components that make up the scagliola overlay are:

 

bullet Milk
bullet Ink
bullet Marble Dust
bullet Yarn

Here's a close up of the pattern on one of the columns:

 

 

Under the scagliola layer is a cement pillar with a steel rod through the middle. In the year 1910 it cost approximately $100 to make a scagliola column, in comparison to $1000 to make a marble column.

Despite their low initial cost, the scagliola columns are now considered irreplaceable, since the process to create them has been lost to the sands of time.

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Rotunda Floor

 

 

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