United States Senate Reception Room
The United States Senate Reception Room is located in the United States Capitol and is one of the Capitol's most richly decorated public rooms that features the work of Italian artist Constantino Brumidi.[1] The room, numbered S-213, has historically been used for meetings and ceremonies. These decorations feature nine permanent portraits of the greatest Senators as determined by a Senate committee. These portraits are placed in massive and ornate golden frames.[2]
Southwest corner of the Senate Reception Room in 2004 | |
Building | United States Capitol |
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Location | Washington, DC |
Country | United States |
Purpose | Meetings |
Senator portraits
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In 1957, a Senate Committee headed by then Senator John F. Kennedy was tasked to decide on the five greatest U.S. Senators of all time so their portraits could decorate the Senate Reception Room.[3] John C. Calhoun (South Carolina) and the two others from the "Great Triumvirate" of Congressional leaders, Daniel Webster (Massachusetts) and Henry Clay (Kentucky), were included as well as Robert A. Taft (Ohio) and Robert M. La Follette (Wisconsin). In 2004, Arthur H. Vandenberg (Michigan) and Robert F. Wagner (New York) were added. In 2006, Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth both from Connecticut were added, changing the group's informal name to become the "famous nine".[3]
References
- "Full House Passes Pascrell Legislation Authorizing Ceremony to Honor Constantino Brumidi" (Press release). US House of Representatives. July 29, 2015. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
- Shaw, John T. (2013). JFK in the Senate: Pathway to the Presidency. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-230-34183-8.
- "The 'Famous Five'". United States Senate. March 12, 1959. Retrieved January 23, 2019.