Statues and Busts in the U.S. Capitol: Collections and Authorities

Statues and Busts in the U.S. Capitol: Collections and Authorities

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Updated August 24, 2023
Statues and Busts in the U.S. Capitol: Collections and
Authorities
The U.S. Capitol is home to hundreds of works of art.
Figure 1. Most Recent Additions to the National
Among them are a number of statues and busts, including
Statuary Hall Collection: Willa Cather (NE) and
the National Statuary Hall Collection and the Senate Vice
Harry Truman (MO)
Presidential Bust Collection, which account for most of the
statuary on display in the U.S. Capitol building.
These works of art arrive in the Capitol in different ways.
For many years, Congress vested authority to acquire and
place art in the Joint Committee on the Library (JCL).
Current law provides that the JCL may be involved in the
process of accepting future donations of art to Congress,
pursuant to authority granted in 1872, particularly with
regard to changes in the National Statuary Hall Collection,
discussed below. In addition to those authorities, in 1988,
Congress assigned responsibility to provide for works of
fine art and other property for display in the Capitol to the
Capitol Preservation Commission. Similar authorities were
granted to the House and Senate through the House of
Representatives Fine Arts Board, the Senate Commission
on Art, and the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration for art in their office buildings and
respective wings of the Capitol.

National Statuary Hall Collection
Source: Architect of the Capitol.
Created in 1864, the National Statuary Hall Collection
Other Methods of Acquiring Statues
contains two statues from each state. Under the law, the
In addition to the established processes for the National
JCL maintains final approval over the design of these
Statuary Hall Collection and the Vice Presidential Bust
statues. It is up to each individual state to choose who is
Collection, Congress also acquires statues and busts by
honored and to pay for the design, creation, and delivery of
commission or receives art by donation.
a new statue to Washington, DC, and removal of an
outgoing statue, which becomes the property of the state
Figure 2. Bust of Vice President Henry Wilson
when it leaves the collection.
In 2000, states were authorized to replace statues in the
National Statuary Hall Collection. Eleven states have
replaced a total of 12 statues. For a list of replaced statues,
see CRS Report R42812, National Statuary Hall
Collection: Background and Legislative Options. Figure 1
depicts the most recent additions to the collection: Harry
Truman, from Missouri, and Willa Cather, from Nebraska.
Senate Vice Presidential Bust Collection
In 1885, the Senate authorized the acquisition of the first
vice presidential bust for Henry Wilson, who served as the
18th Vice President (1873-1875), shown in Figure 2. In
1886, the Senate authorized placement of marble busts of

each Vice President, in niches of the Senate chamber.
Source: U.S. Senate, Senate Vice Presidential Bust Collection.
In 1947, oversight of the acquisition of vice presidential
Commission Artwork
busts was transferred from the Senate Committee on the
In some cases, Congress has chosen to commission, or
Library to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
purchase, artwork to commemorate an event or the
Each bust is acquired by the Architect of the Capitol, with
the committee’s approval.
importance of an individual to the United States. For

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Statues and Busts in the U.S. Capitol: Collections and Authorities
example, in the 109th Congress (2005-2006), Congress
World War II (1994; H.Con.Res. 222, 103rd Congress);
authorized the JCL to commission a statue of Rosa Parks
and
for placement in the Capitol (P.L. 109-116). The Rosa
Parks statue was installed and dedicated in 2013. Similarly,
• Bust of Sojourner Truth—an abolitionist and women’s
in the 117th Congress (2021-2022), Congress directed JCL
suffrage advocate who worked to end slavery and to aid
to obtain statues of former Supreme Court Associate
newly freed slaves following the Civil War (2006; P.L.
Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
109-427).
The Architect of the Capitol is directed to permanently
install the statues in the Capitol or on Capitol Grounds (P.L.
Figure 4. Examples of Statues and Busts Donated to
117-111). Figure 3 shows the Rosa Parks statue located in
Congress
National Statuary Hall, although it is not part of the
National Statuary Hall Collection.
Figure 3. Rosa Parks Statue in the Capitol

Source: Architect of the Capitol, Capitol Campus Art.
Removal of Statues and Busts
In the 117th Congress (2021-2022), Congress authorized the
removal of a bust of former Chief Justice Roger Taney from
the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the U.S. Capitol and the
acquisition of a bust of Justice Thurgood Marshall (P.L.
117-326). The law directed the JCL to remove the Roger
Taney bust within 45 days of enactment and to “enter into
an agreement to obtain a bust of Thurgood Marshall” not
later than two years after enactment.

Legislation, 118th Congress (2023-2024)
Source: Architect of the Capitol.
In the 118th Congress, legislation has been introduced to
Donation of Artwork
“remove all statues of individuals who voluntarily served
the Confederate States of America” displayed in the U.S.
Historically, Congress has accepted donated artwork for
Capitol (H.R. 1248 and S. 573). Similar legislation was
display in the Capitol. To accept a work of art
introduced in the 116th (2019-2020) and 117th (2021-2022)
commissioned and paid for by a third-party entity, Congress
Congresses.
has historically passed legislation authorizing the
acceptance of the work. Congress has accepted the
H.R. 1248 was referred to the Committee on House
donations of numerous works of art. These works have been
Administration. S. 573 was referred to the Senate
donated by various individuals and groups, including
Committee on Rules and Administration. No further action
private citizens, social organizations, military organizations,
has been taken on either measure at the time of this writing.
and foreign governments. Figure 4 shows the following
donations:
Jacob R. Straus, Specialist on the Congress
• Statue of Ulysses S. Grant (1899; S.J.Res. 75, 51st
R. Eric Petersen, Specialist in American National
Congress);
Government
•
IF12209
Bust of Raoul Wallenberg—a Swedish citizen who
worked to save thousands of Hungarian Jews during

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Statues and Busts in the U.S. Capitol: Collections and Authorities

Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to
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Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has
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