After the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition of l876, so many countries gave the contents of their national exhibits to the Smithsonian Institution, as the museum arm of the United States Government, that the Smithsonian was obliged to construct a building to house and display these treasures. The museum was called the Arts and Industries Building, and it can be visited today on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., sandwiched between the old Smithsonian Castle and the Hirshhorn art museum. Some of the Centennial objects remain on exhibition to this day.
