Golden Dome

[Back to topic list] [Back to Notre Dame - Jerry & Dorene Topic]

Campus News and Hall Notes
January - March 2005

Mar. 27, 2005
Campus News:

This past fall the Main Building turned 125 years old. And beginning on March 7 the golden dome started being regilded for just the tenth tie in school history. The scaffolding system around the Main Building took three weeks to install. The regilding process consists of applying 3,500 square feet of 23.9-karat gold leafs. The regilding can only be done during optimal weather conditions. The process is done by hand and can only be applied on dry days without wind. The material includes eight ounces of gold. Conrad Schmitt Studios of New Berlin, Wisconsin is doing the work for a cost of $300,000.

The last regilding took place in 1988. The number of years between regildings is not set in stone. It is only decided after an evaluation. The process will take the spring and summer. There are also plans to make additional repairs to the outside of the Main Building and to paint parts of the drum on which the dome stands.

Historical facts: The dome was added to the Main Building in 1882. Initially administrators thought the gold gilding would be extravagant and suggested that yellow be used instead. ND founder Father Edward Soring insisted it be gold. (Good call.) By the way, there was a time when students were not supposed to walk up the front steps of the Main Building until after they had graduated.

The Dome was gilded for the first time in 1886, 1 year after construction on the original Main Building. In March 2005, crews began the tenth re-gilding of the Dome and the statue of Our Lady Mary at top the Main Building. The current re-gilding process will take an estimated 6 months time to complete.

Chip c. 1988

Chip c. 1961