The golden dome atop the State House in Concord, New Hampshire shines with a brilliance not seen for a generation, as a $2.6 million renovation that has been two years in the making heads toward completion, on time and on budget.
The dome restoration is the most visible aspect of a State House makeover that coincides with the run-up to the building’s bicentennial in 2019.
“It was hard to remember that the dome was gold, it was so tarnished,” says state Rep. Renny Cushing, D-Hampton, chairman of the State House Bicentennial Commission, who along with state Sen. David Watters of Dover is overseeing event planning for the three-year celebration.
New gold leaf has been painstakingly applied using methods that will ensure the metallic-looking surface shines brightly for the next three decades, thanks to lessons learned from the last restoration in 1997, which suffered from “premature failure,” according to Ted Kupper, administrator for the state Division of Public Works.
“The gold was worn off, the primer was worn off, and what you were looking at was the base copper roof of the building,” he said.
Photo of State House prior to restoration via Wikipedia.