Washington's Tomb is a small chamber in the basement of the United States Capitol building. It was designed to entomb the body of George Washington, the first President of the United States. The tomb is two levels beneath the Capitol rotunda, with the United States Capitol crypt the intermediary level.
The original design of the rotunda, and the crypt beneath it, included a central glass floor allowing the public to view Washington's Tomb two floors below. This design was never implemented, however, and Washington was buried at Mount Vernon, his estate in nearby Virginia, in accordance with his will.
Formerly, the Lincoln Catafalque was stored and exhibited in the tomb, until its recent removal to the Capitol Visitor Center.
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
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