Almost immediately, however, delegates began considering measures to replace the Articles. The convention's initial mandate was limited to amending the Articles of Confederation, which had proven highly ineffective in meeting the young nation's needs. Delegates to the convention were chosen by the state legislatures of 12 of the 13 original states Rhode Island refused to send delegates. ![]() The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787. The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world today. Article VII establishes the procedure subsequently used by the 13 states to ratify it. ![]() Article IV, Article V, and Article VI embody concepts of federalism, describing the rights and responsibilities of state governments, the states in relationship to the federal government, and the shared process of constitutional amendment. The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, whereby the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress ( Article I) the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers ( Article II) and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts ( Article III). Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the national frame and constraints of government. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. National Archives Building in Washington, D.C., U.S.Ĭongress of the Confederation in Philadelphia, U.S. The Constitution of the United States of America, As Amended (PDF), July 25, 2007 Photography is prohibited in the Rotunda and all exhibition areas in the National Archives Museum.Page one of the officially engrossed copy of the Constitution signed in Philadelphia by delegates of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 Ĭonstitutional presidential federal republic The Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, and other original documents displayed in the National Archives Museum are fragile and at risk to fading from light, especially flash photography. Light fades ink and destroys parchment and paper, so light levels in the Rotunda are deliberately kept low. Why is it so cold and dark in the Rotunda?Ĭooler temperatures prolong the life of documents. Today, it is sealed in the most scientifically advanced housing that preservation technology can provide. This parchment has been proudly displayed over many decades, including 35 years of exposure to sunlight opposite a window in the Patent Office Building. ![]() Rotunda FAQs Why is the Declaration so faded? They are among the largest single-piece oil-on-canvas murals in the United States. The Faulkner Murals gracing the curved walls of the Rotunda were painted by artist Barry Faulkner in 1935–36 and depict fictional scenes of the presentation of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Key to the Faulkner Mural showing the presentation of the Constitution
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