I have lived in the Sacramento area since I was approximately 6 months old, but I had never taken a tour of the historic Capitol. I've been inside a few times...mostly to meet folks for lunch in the cafeteria when I worked at the East End Complex. So I dragged my daughter downtown during winter break to check it out.
We stopped in the museum office to sign up for the free tour and were told to meet by the statue of Ronald Reagan.
While we waited for our tour guide, we wandered around looking at the murals painted on the walls. We found one to be particularly interesting... It depicted some very cheeky indigenous folks. The one on the left seems to have something special on his...errr...mind. haha!
Our tour guide gave a brief explanation of the room and murals, but didn't touch that one! Unlike the fellow who couldn't resist touching!
Most of the building can be seen by anyone walking through.
There were two rooms that I particularly wanted to see. The Assembly and the Senate. To be fair you can also see these rooms when the legislature is in session, but you can't take pictures and you have to be quiet. That's no fun.
I loved the Assembly room. It was beautifully appointed in green and gold.
Both rooms have a large painting holding pride of place.
The back of each room has gorgeous columns and curtains. This is our tour group.
Now on to the Senate. Much darker vibe with claret red furnishings to go with the dark wood desks.
Next we moved on to the beautiful rotunda under the dome. The bottom floor is a classic checkerboard with "Columbus' Last Appeal to Isabella" centered to greet visitors.
An interesting tradition at the Capitol is that at the end of the Legislature, the staffers, lobbyists, and whomever else wants to have some fun line the railing of the 2nd floor rotunda and try to lob pennies into Queen Isabella's crown. I've no idea if the winner gets a prize, but it sounds like a good time.
This started in the 1940s. The statue was installed in 1883 so I guess the Queen did have a few peaceful years.
The dome and walls under it are stunning.
California Grizzly Bears and the goddess Minerva are prominent in the decor throughout the Capitol.
This is NOT a California Grizzly. This is a BROWN bear that the Governator commissioned and had placed outside his office. Apparently he didn't know that the State bear was a California Grizzly. It's called "Google" Ah-nold. He also had his name PERMANENTLY inscribed above the door. Even though the office of Governor is NOT permanent.
Personally I think old Arnold has more then a few screws loose. Or perhaps missing altogether. Luckily, they were able to remove his name (although you can still faintly see it). But the bear was cute so they let her stay.
The last two photos are not inside the Capitol, but they were a couple things I didn't get a good photo of on my last visit. So I'm putting them here.
The first is the Sisters of Mercy statue outside of the current main entrance.
And the next is the delightful flower of the Abutilon, or Flowering Maple.
I love flowers. :-)
xoxo
