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Palace of Fine Arts
The Rotunda from the Peristyle

Palace of Fine Arts - The Rotunda from the Peristyle

From any point in the peristyle of the Palace of Fine Arts and under any atmospheric conditions, either by day or by night; the vistas are peculiarly satisfying and charming. About the columns of the stately colonnade are blooming plants in simple, natural groups. And at intervals between the columns under the rotunda or along either end of the laguna, the outdoor gallery of sculpture finds a sympathetic background and setting.

The great dome of the rotunda which crowns so many of the vistas, is stained a velvety burnt orange, with a turquoise blue-green border. Beneath, are eight panels in low relief by Bruno L. Zimm, symbolizing Greek culture and its desire for poetic and artistic expression, conceived in a deeply classic vein and executed with spirit and grace. Below the panels is an attic of pale-green marble.

Flanking each pier of the rotunda are two Corinthian columns in Sienna marble, within the arches are corresponding Corinthian pilasters, and within the dome against each pier is another massive Corinthian column in marble, each one crowned with the serene and noble "Priestess of Culture" by Herbert Adams of New York.

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