State-of-the-art museum with conoid skylight and 210-foot mast rising at 60-degree angle from 160-foot-high atrium. Design competition and engineering excellence awards. 120,000 sf.

The National Museum of the Marine Corps echoes the iconic photo of the flag-raising on Iwo Jima. A 210-foot mast protruding through the top of the skylight rises from the floor of the 18,000-square-foot circular Central Gallery at a 60-degree angle similar to the flagpole in the photograph. A concrete ring beam supports the steel skylight frame, which consists of five ridge beams and thirty-two smaller rib beams. To resist torsion, stainless steel rods brace the rib beams laterally, and X braces provide stiffening. The Central Gallery stair tower has cantilevered balconies and an observation deck at the top. The design allows for future expansion around the Central Gallery.

Completion Date: 2006
Location: Quantico, Virginia
Owner or Client: Marine Corps Heritage Foundation / USMC and Navy
Prime Consultant(s): Fentress Bradburn