Historic Hotels of America, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation to recognize and celebrate the nation’s most magnificent hotels, has named the Capital Hotel in downtown Little Rock for its 2023 “Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Ceilings and Domes” list. .
The list is released during Preservation Month in May to highlight the architectural wonders and artistic masterpieces preserved in each of the historic hotels inducted into the Historic Hotels of America. In many cases, the large and ornate roofs have been recognized as contributing factors to these hotels being designated as National Historic Landmarks by the US Secretary of the Interior.
The Capital Hotel earned a place on this list, which has never been mentioned, because of the beautiful transparent glass lighting that dates back to the hotel at the beginning of the 20th century.
Photo Credit: Historic Hotels of America
In the center of the stained glass is an image of the Arkansas Capitol Building, which was still under construction when the skylight was created. The vivid paintwork shows that each piece of stained glass was handcrafted, and carbon fiber tips have been added to reflect the beauty of the sky light regardless of the time of day. The stained glass was removed, cleaned and restored during the hotel’s renovation in 1996, and is regularly inspected and cleaned to maintain its beauty and integrity.
Other hotels on the list include the Palace Hotel in San Francisco for its glass dome, the Hamilton Hotel in Washington DC for its Greco-Roman rotunda and the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond for its stained glass windows.
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