Dome

View looking east on axis down the Mall towards the Washington Memorial; "In 1996, a two-stage design competition was opened. Out of 400 preliminary designs entered, six were chosen to compete in the second stage which required review by a design jury. After careful review, the design by architect Friedrich St. Florian was chosen. St. Florian's design consisted of the Rainbow Pool (lowered and reduced in size by 15 percent) in a sunken plaza, surrounded in a circular pattern with 56 pillars (each 17-feet-high) which represent the unity of the U.S. states and territories during the war. Visitors would enter the sunken plaza on ramps which will pass by two giant arches (each 41-feet tall) that represent the two fronts of the war. Inside, there would be a Freedom Wall covered with 4,000 gold stars, each representing 100 Americans that died during World War II. A sculpture by Ray Kasky would be placed in the middle of the Rainbow Pool and two fountains would send water more than 30-feet into the air. The memorial consists of 56 pillars, each measuring 17 feet (5 m) tall, arranged in a semicircle around a central plaza with two 43-foot (13 m) arches on opposite sides. Each pillar is inscribed with the names of the 48 U.S. states that were then part of the Union, as well as the District of Columbia, the Alaska Territory and Territory of Hawaii, the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Each arch is inscribed with "Atlantic" and "Pacific." The plaza is 337 ft 10 in (103.0 m) long and 240 feet 2 inches (73.2 m) wide, is sunk 6 feet (1.8 m) below grade, and contains a pool that is 246 feet 9 inches by 147 feet 8 inches (75.2 x 45.0 m). Due to the association of WWII Servicemen with the phrase "Kilroy was here", the memorial includes an engraving typical of the Kilroy graffiti. The Freedom Wall is located on the west side of the memorial, with a view of the Reflecting Pool and Lincoln Memorial behind it. The wall contains 4,048 gold stars, each representing approximately 100 American deaths incurred in the war." Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (accessed 7/17/2008)