Furniture Tour - Ground Floor
From the west wing of the ground floor, pass under the glass floor and continue to the east wing. The tour guide desk will appear on your right, with the special exhibit room on your left. Enter into the room.
House Rostrum
The recreated House rostrum consists of the original rostrum top and a new base commissioned in 2022. Check out the surrounding exhibit labels to learn more about how the original top survived, and how it found its way back to the Capitol!
Made of solid walnut and originally created by the Feige Brothers Company of Saginaw, the rostrum is fashioned in the Renaissance Revival style. This is evident from its straight lines, its heaviness, the columns that run down the piece, and the dentils lining the top portion of it – all classicizing elements.
Library Bookcase
When the current Capitol opened in 1879, it housed the State Library. Situated in the west wing, the library occupied the second, third, and fourth floors with two intermediate galleries.
The library held up to 100,000 volumes in large walnut bookcases like the one recreated here. Check out the labels within the bookcase to learn more about the process of recreating this piece!
Photos courtesy of the Craig A. Whitford Collection
Like the House rostrum, this bookcase is also Renaissance Revival style. Notice that the top is reminiscent of pediments seen in classical architecture, complete with dentils running along it and thick scrolls in its corners.
Exit the special exhibition room. Take the elevator across the hall up to floor two.