Two Days in Vegas
July 7-9, 2004
Part 3: Artworks of the Hoover Dam
As impressive as the engineering is the art of the Hoover Dam. Its architecture is adorned with with numerous Art Deco touches. Two elevator houses toward the center of the dam feature brightly polished brass doors and bas relief sandstone carvings, and
On the Nevada side of the dam there rests a monument to those who built the dam and those who died in its construction. On two black obelisks perch two winged sentries.
These figures flank this plaque in the center atop which stands a flagpole:
The American flag flutters high above.
This monument rests upon a star chart of the Southwestern night sky, painstakingly rendered in multicolored terrazzo.
Mounted to a wall on the west side of the dam are thermometers showing the temperature in Fahrenheit and Celsius. This picture, taken at 5:01 p.m., shows the temperature hovering at 106°.
Numerous plaques document the construction and statistics of the dam and its surroundings. At the center of the dam stands this brass plate:
