Downtown visitors and drivers on South Congress Avenue have noticed something different about the Capitol—it is wearing braces. The granite gubernatorial giant is being refurbished 122 years after it was opened to the public. The work that began in May is expected to cost $3.5 million and be finished within a few days of Christmas. The dome and surrounding rooftop are being repaired for weather damage and the elaborate ceiling is being refinished.

Here is a brief look at the history of this famous building:

•The Capitol building was designed by Elijah E. Myers, who won a contest to design it in 1881. The State offered him $1,700 for the project, then fired him five years later.

•The finishing touches were put on the building in 1888. The Capitol stood out a bit more then, as Texas was 50 years old and had only three other state buildings.

•The architects gave the structure an older Italian design and made the building the biggest Capitol in the country—and at 990,000 square feet, it still is.

•At the time, it was the seventh-largest building in the world. It is still taller than the nation’s Capitol in D.C.

•The Goddess of Liberty, at the top of the Texas Capitol, is not included in its height measurement. The original statue is a mystery: it is unknown who designed it, where it was made or who it was modeled after.

•Most of the Capitol was constructed from the pinkish-red granite that was quarried from Marble Falls. This rock is fragile and is one of the reasons renovations were required.

•The dome is one part that was not made of granite but instead of sheet metal. However, this year the dome will get a coat of marble-colored paint.

•A very St. Edward’s-like disaster struck the Capitol in 1983—its main building nearly burned down. In response, the state created a master plan to add to the Capitol and rebuild it.

•The work took nearly a decade. Add-ons such as the underground segment were added to the Capitol then.

•The Texas State Preservation Board was put in charge of maintaining the structure after the fire. The Board was not available for comment.