Letter
Dear Ms. Nersesian:
In its public meeting of 19 February conducted by videoconference, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed a final design submission for modifications to the Washington Monument Grounds to accommodate the below-grade installation of a time capsule in celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence. The Commission approved the proposal for a new granite paver within the monument’s circular plaza to identify the location of the capsule.
The Commission members expressed strong support for the meaningful gesture of paired time capsules—the other placed below the George Washington statue in Trafalgar Square, London, in 2025—and they observed that the proposed inlaid metal strip along the geographic line between the Washington Monument and the statue in London would provide a subtle indication of the time capsule’s presence below. They encouraged the National Park Service to consider the future installation of additional symbolic elements, such as the stars featured on the capsule’s lid, to the surface of the stone paver to more clearly mark the capsule’s location.
The Commission looks forward to the review of any interpretive or symbolic features to be associated with this project in the future. As always, the staff is available to assist you.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
Jen Nersesian, Regional Director
Region 1 – National Capital Area
National Park Service
1100 Ohio Drive, SW
Washington, DC 20242
cc: William Roberts, Foster & Partners
John Gerber, Friends of the Washington Statue, Inc.
Marcel Acosta, National Capital Planning Commission