By Frank Leone
At the southern edge of Foggy Bottom (2101 Constitution Avenue) stands the semi-classical National Academy of Sciences (NAS) building. The site is best known for its oversized relaxed statue of Albert Einstein, but you can enter the building and find other wonders, including its neo-byzantine decorated Great Hall and modern auditorium. We visited the building as part of a tour arranged by the Foggy Bottom West End Village last fall. [Note: The NAS is speaking up for government-funded science at this challenging time, while trying to comply with Presidential orders.
The NAS was founded by President Lincoln and the Congress in 1863, amid the Civil War. It was created as a private, non-profit, independent society of independent scholars to provide scientific advice to the Federal government and plan for new federal agencies, including the National Park Service. Its missions today are to validate scientific excellence, enhance the vitality of the scientific enterprise; guide public policy with science; and communicate the nature, values, and judgements of science to the government and public. Clearly that mission is more important today than ever. The NAS and its affiliates, including the National Research Council (est. 1916), have provided reports and publications on issues from education to health to technology to climate change.
The NAS operated out of the Smithsonian Institution (castle) building from 1881. In 1919, using a grant from the Carnegie Corporation, the NAS purchased its current property, which had included the Old Glass House and a streambed. Architect Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue (1869-1924) designed the building, despite his reluctance, in a semi-classical style in part to reflect the Lincoln Memorial, then under construction. Goodhue died unexpectedly a few days before the building’s opening on April 28, 1924. In its dedication, President Calvin Coolidge accurately described the building as a “Temple of Science.”
The building exterior features stone carvings and bronze work by Lee Lawrie (1877-1963) (best known for the Atlas sculpture at the Rockefeller Center in New York City). The exterior art features classical Egyptian and Greek designs and bronze reliefs of great scientists (e.g. Galileo, Franklin, Pasteur). The highlight of the interior is the Great Hall, including a 56-foot-high dome, decorated with painted and gilded images, symbols, and inscriptions that illustrate the history of science. Hildreth Meiere (1892-1961) designed the decorations in an Art Deco style, but with a byzantine mosaic-like appearance.
The building contains a library and reading room (now a members center) for use by visiting scholars, a Board Room featuring a mural of Lincoln at the signing of the NAS Charter, and a modern auditorium with great acoustics. The building also houses offices and meeting spaces. Check here for the latest cultural programs, exhibitions, and events.
Sources: National Academy of Sciences; The National Academy of Sciences Building: A Home for Sciences in America, NAS, 2013; NAS, 1922 Annual Report; FBA History Project.
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