THE FEMALE ASPECT OF THE U.S. CAPITOL

Few citizens of the U.S. realize that our Capitol in Washington D.C. has a treasure trove of feminine statues and the feminine represented on the pediments of some government buildings. The Statue of Freedom adorns the top of the Capitol building. She stands there in all her glory overseeing the Senate and House of Representatives. She was created by Thomas Crawford and is 19 feet 6 inches tall and stands 288 feet above the east front plaza. She was placed there on December 2, 1863. I wonder if any of our government officials have taken the time to contemplate this.

Within the Capitol rotunda, the center fresco is titled The Apothesis of Washington (George) and was done by Constantine Brumidi in 1865. George Washington is portrayed as rising to heaven accompanied by the goddesses Liberty and Fame. He is surrounded by 13 females representing the original states. I learned that Apothesis means the raising of a person to the rank of a god.
Yes, honoring George Washington by raising him to the rank of a god!

Surrounding this fresco under the dome are other frescos and the two that are of the most interest to me is the one titled Science. Science shows the goddess Minerva (aka Athena) teaching Benjamin Franklin, Robert Fulton and Samuel F.B. Morse. The fresco titled Agriculture has the goddess Ceres seated on the McCormick Reaper with feminine entities.

One should wonder what goddesses have to do with the United States Capitol. My knowledge is that goddesses are usually associated with paganism. There is not one Judeo-Christian figure or symbol used to represent Liberty and its ideals! There also seems to be a number of Italian artists/scultors who portray these goddesses in the U.S. Capitol. There is nothing associated with the Catholic Church.

Outside the Capitol building, there are sculptural pediments. One, over the East entrance is titled Genius of America. Yes, genius! There are three females. This pediment was created by Luigi Perseco from 1825-1828 out of sandstone. This deteriorated and a reproduction was created by Bruno Mankowski 1959-1960.

Perisco's original design included the figures of Peace, Plenty and Hercules and these were replaced by John Quincy Adams with the figure of Hope. As it is today, the Central figure is America and she is resting her right arm on a shield inscribed with "USA" and it is supported by an altar inscribed with "July 4, 1776." America is pointing to Justice lifting scales of Justice in her left hand and in her right hand, she holds a scroll inscribed with "Constitution, 17 September 1787." On America's left is an Eagle and also the female figure of Hope who is resting her arm on an anchor. The entire pediment is 81 feet and 6 inches wide and the female figures are 9 feet tall.

Outside the Supreme Court is a large statue of a female representing Justice. She is seated and holding a small female who is blindfolded. Interesting. There is also a pediment over the entrance to the Supreme Court. In the center is a female Liberty and flanking her are males representing Law and Order. Under this pediment is engraved in stone "Equal Justice Under Law." I would think that the Supreme Court Justices and lawyers would take this to heart because women have not received equal justice nor have people of color.

Several years ago I visited Washington D.C. and viewed what I have written about above. It was an awe-inspiring experience. Not once did I see anything that pertained to the Judeo-Christian religions or Islam. Our Founding Fathers did not create these United States based on Christianity. These symbols of goddesses and females go back to ancient antiquity. They knew something that our current officials apparently do not know. Perhaps we should remind them.