National Archives

One of the things I was rushing away from the White House to see was the National Archives.

That's the only photo I got because inside no photography is allowed at all.  There was a long line to get in and then more waiting in an antechamber tantalisingly close to my goal: the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights.  My only disappointment was that the Magna Carta which is usually on display was away being restored.  But it was only a very slight disappointment.

These are housed in what they call the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom (yes, well, I'll let them off this time, they're obviously very proud of these documents) which is enormous and decorated a pair of murals of the signing of the declaration and the signing of the constitution.  Unfortunately the entire thing is lit so poorly that it's hard to see these as the artist intended, but they are still impressive.    You can see them online here probably better than I could in person.

The low light is due to the state of the documents which have had a tumultuous life and weren't always looked after that well.  Despite being restored recently it's very difficult to make out much of the original text.  But the larger stuff is still plain enough, like the "We the people" at the top of the Constitution and the "July 4 1776" on the Declaration. I saw John Hancock's flamboyant signature on the Declaration, from which we get the expression "John Hancock" for signature, though it wasn't quite as flamboyant as I was expecting.  And there were also recognisable signatures from other famous figures like Jefferson, Adams, Franklin and the like.  I was also amused by the error in the Constitution, which one of the guards pointed out, where Pennsylvania is spelled wrong.

During busy times visitors are let into the rotunda in groups of about fifty, and you only have a few minutes to look around before the next group comes.  But it's all you really need.  Before you go in a guard gives you a little pep talk and tells people not to try to read every last jot and tittle, but that doesn't stop people from trying and eventually being moved on.  You really go for the experience of seeing these historic documents first hand (even if they are behind thick layers of bullet proof glass).  I'd heard so much about them, and there they were in front of me.

It was well worth the wait.