Library of Congress: The Art and Architecture of the Thomas Jefferson Building by John Young Cole

Handsomely illustrated tribute

A handsomely illustrated tribute to the Library of Congress building, published to coincide with its one hundredth anniversary. Arguably the most beautifully decorated building in the United States, the Library of Congress building (recently renamed the Jefferson Building) is celebrating its one hundredth anniversary this year after an eighty million dollar restoration that returned it to its original state.

John L. Smithmeyer

Designed by John L. Smithmeyer and completed in 1897 at a cost of under seven million dollars, the building is enhanced by the art of over forty sculptors and painters whose ranks include such notables as Herbert Adams, Kenyon Cox, Edward Clark Potter, Louis Saint-Gaudens, and John Quincy Adams Ward.

Planning and construction

The planning and construction are detailed in John Y. Cole's essay, followed by discussions by Henry Hope Reed, Richard Murray, and Thomas P. Somma of the decorations, paintings, and sculptures. The volume concludes with a study of the restoration by Barbara Wolanin, a chronology, a glossary of architectural and decorative terms, and a biographical dictionary of all the artists, architects, and designers who worked on the building. Throughout, noted photographer Anne Day's color images enhance this splendid book.

Henry Hope Reed

Henry Hope Reed is founder and president of Classical America and is the author of numerous books, including The Golden City and The New York Public Library: Its Architecture and Decoration (both published by Norton). Henry Hope Reed lives in New York City.
John Y. Cole is a librarian, historian, and director of The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company, 1998
ISBN: 0393045633

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