This center section of the building was completed in 1827 under the direction of the third Architect of the Capitol, Charles Bulfinch.

This vaulted space beneath the Rotunda has long been called the Crypt because of its resemblance to similar areas in churches, which were often used for chapels and tombs.

Forty Aquia Creek sandstone columns in the Doric style support the floor above and were installed in the 1820s under architect Charles Bulfinch, who completed the construction of the Capitol in 1826.

A Walk Through the U.S. Capitol Crypt

The floor is original and is paved with stone from the quarry at Seneca, Maryland. The central white marble "compass stone" in the floor marks the center of the U.S. Capitol and is the point where the city is divided into quadrants (Northeast, Northwest, Southeast and Southwest).

Located in the Crypt are 13 statues from the National Statuary Hall Collection, representing the 13 original colonies, and the Magna Carta replica and display.

Directly beneath the Crypt is a space where Congress had hoped to place the remains of George and Martha Washington. However, their graves remained at Mount Vernon, and no one has been buried in the Capitol.

Is anyone buried in the Capitol?

No. A tomb area was built for the remains of George Washington beneath the Crypt, but his will specified that he wished to be buried at his home at Mount Vernon, and his descendants honored this wish.

See Also: How the Crypt Got its Name

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Doric Columns

Doric columns typically have a simple, rounded capital at the top; a heavy, fluted or smooth column shaft; and no base. Flutes are vertical, parallel channels that run the length of a column.

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View of the star in the center of the Crypt floor.
View of the star in the center of the Crypt floor.
View of the Crypt in the U.S. Capitol.