DC -- Smithsonian Institution Building (The Castle) -- Exhibit: Views from the Tall Tower:
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- Description of Pictures: Views from the Tall Tower
August 1, 2012 – Indefinitely
In 1863, artist Titian Ramsey Peale took a series of 8 photographs from the roof of the Castle’s tall north tower that form a panoramic view of Washington. A corresponding set of 8 images, taken from the exact same vantage points in 2012, shows a much changed city.
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- VIEWS_210730_01.JPG: Although many technological advances had been made by 1863, photography was still a relatively young science and art form. The equipment that Titian Peale used to take his views of Washington was bulky and very heavy compared to the compact and light-weight digital camera that took the 2012 photographs. Carrying his equipment, Peale ascended the staircase to the 4th floor of the Castle then climbed a series of wooden ladders to the roof above the 12th floor. In 2012, the same trip was made in a small but rickety elevator.
- VIEWS_210730_53.JPG: Two Views from the Tall North Tower:
At 140 feet above ground, the roof of the Castle's tall north tower, affords an unobstructed 360 degree view of the Mall, downtown Washington, and the Potomac River.
In 1863, Titian Ramsey Peale, an artist and personal friend of the Smithsonian's first secretary Joseph Henry took the top series of eight photographs from the tower roof forming a panoramic view of Washington.
The corresponding eight images, taken from the same vantage points in 2012, show a much changed city.
Photograph taken from the northwest with the Castle in the distance, ca 1855 by an unknown photographer. Note the building stones used for the construction of the south wing of the Treasury Building (visible in the lower right foreground) are lined up along the 15th Street.
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