Archives Building with Flag Ornament

• National Archives Store Exclusive
• Made in the U.S.A.
• Ceramic
• Red ribbon hanger

• Product Description

• Share your love of the National Archives building this holiday season with this ceramic ornament. A hand-drawn image of the north portico of the Archives building shows the sheer grandeur of the the temple of our history, with the stars and stripes of a giant American flag peeking through the Corinthian columns. The design is surrounded by a ring of blue lattice and hangs on a red ribbon.

In 1930, New York Architect John Russell Pope was selected to design the National Archives Building. Pope's neoclassical design included both practical and symbolic aspects of housing the nation's records. He proposed a monumental structure with highly decorative architectural features, giant Corinthian columns, 40-foot bronze doors, and inscriptions representing the building's historical importance.

Construction began in 1931 with a groundbreaking ceremony on Pennsylvania Avenue. On February 20, 1933, President Herbert Hoover laid the cornerstone of the building, dedicating it to the people of the United States.

In December 2023, the National Archives Building was designated as a National Historic Landmark.