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attained had he remained simply one among legions of art- ists in his native country. So, too, was his experience un- der the Roman Republic a preparation for sympathetically depicting scenes from the American Revolution as well as appreciating his own life and freedom in his new nation. A painting he is said to have brought with him depicting Christian martyrs may well reflect his recent distressing imprisonment. Perhaps his most frequently quoted state- ment is his 1855 wish that he might "live long enough to make beautiful the Capitol of the one country on Earth in which there is liberty." 31 Brumidi never returned to Rome. He applied for United States citizenship soon after he landed, and he became a naturalized U.S. citizen in November 1857. He became well respected as "the artist of the Capitol." In bringing Rome to Washington, he became part of American history. Barbara A. Wolanin has been the curator for the Architect of the Capitol since 1985. She is responsible for the care of the works of art and historical records under the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol. Her duties include overseeing the art conservation program, research, and exhibitions. Her book, Constantino Brumidi: Artist of the Capitol, was published in 1998. N otes 1. Until a century after his death, little was known about Brumidi's life and work in Rome by either Capitol Curator Charles Fairman or Myrtle Cheney Murdock, who published Constantino Brumidi: Michelangelo of the United States Capitol (Washington, D.C.: Monumental Press, Inc., 1950). In the 1970s, Profesor Pellegrino Nazzaro got access to the Vatican archives; he contributed the chapter on Brumidi's Italian years for my book Constantino Brumidi: Artist of the Capitol (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1998). By the early 1990s, more documents were uncovered in Rome by curator Alberta Campitelli and art historian Barbara Steindl, "Constantino Brumidi da Roma a Washington. Vicende e opera di un artistromanoo," Richerche di Storie dell'arte 46 (1992). Henry Hope Reed, in preparation for e United States Capitol: Its Architecture and Decoration (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2005), hired Dr. Maria Antonietta de Angelis to find and make copies of the Roman documents related to Brumidi; he graciously shared them with me. Visits to Rome and overseeing the conservation of Brumidi's murals have been vital to my understanding of his art and sources. I have greatly benefitted from the insights, knowledge, and discoveries of conservators, first Bernard Rabin and his team and then Christiana Cunningham Ad- ams for the past two decades. 2. Stauros Brumidi (1752–1829) came to Rome in 1781. His name also appears in documents as "Stauro Bromedi" or in the Italian version as "Croce Brumidi," since his first name meant "cross." Travelers have told me that there are still people with the name Brumidi living in Philiatra. 3. Archivio Storico del Vicariato, Rome (ASVR), Tabu- larium Vicariatus Urbis, Parish of SS. Quirico and Guilitta. 4. Archives of the Accademia di San Luca: Misc. Cong. II, n. 7, September 30, 1821. 5. In 1849 Brumidi described himself as both painter and sculptor in his request for a position with the Roman Republic. Archivio di Stato di Roma (ASR), Camerlengato, Titolo IV, Parte II, b. 290 (int. 3284). 6. Later named the Weld-Clifford Chapel, it was con- structed by the architect Agostino Giorgioli in 1838. 7. Campitelli and Steindl, "Constantino Brumidi," p. 49 and note 17, p. 59. 8. September 29, 1822, and September 29, 1823, Archives of the Accademia di San Luca. 16 THE CAPITOL DOME SPRING 2014 Detail of the profile relief portrait of George Washington that Brumidi painted in his first room in the Capitol, H-144. ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL