National Archives, Washington DC

National Archives, Washington DC

The National Archives preserves documents of national and historical importance such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, an original version of the 1297 Magna Carta, Articles of Confederation, the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, the Emancipation Proclamation, declassified top secret documents related to the Cold War, and collections of photography and other historically and culturally significant American artifacts.

The National Archives preserves documents of national and historical importance such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, an original version of the 1297 Magna Carta, Articles of Confederation, the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, the Emancipation Proclamation, declassified top secret documents related to the Cold War, and collections of photography and other historically and culturally significant American artifacts. It is a must-visit for history buffs and political science enthusiasts.

Start your visit from the Orientation Plaza which provides an introduction to the Archives. The ground floor also has the David M Rubenstein Gallery which houses the 'Records of Rights', a permanent exhibition that explores the rights and freedoms granted by the nation's founding documents and the evolution of constitutional rights of citizens. Its highlight is the Magna Carta.

The upper level has the main Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom, which displays the Declaration of Independence housed in a hermetically sealed humidity-controlled encasement filled with inert argon. Also on display here are the United States Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. The Faulkner Murals on the walls, which depict fictional scenes of the presentation of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, are among the largest single-piece oil-on-canvas murals in the country. Around the Rotunda are the Public Vaults, home to historic original records of importance such as Abraham Lincoln’s telegrams to his generals, and the 1823 copperplate of the Declaration of Independence.