When I give history tours, I say, "There are sixty 2" by 2" panels, each of which contains about 42 pieces of glass." Using simple math, you would assume there are 2,520 pieces, right?
Check out the half-circle table in our lobby -- it's been polished to such a high shine that you can see the reflection of the stained-glass ceiling in it!
This shot of our stained-glass canopy gives you some idea of the mechanics behind it -- or, rather, above it. Support beams and wires anchor the ceiling to the building to keep it safe.
Uh oh! Looks like some balloons have escaped from their netting for our Masquerade Ball tonight!
The very top of our Christmas tree is just below our lobby's stained-glass ceiling canopy. Lovely to see the glass glittering while the tree lights twinkle!
Everyone who climbs up or down our cantilevered cherrywood staircase is confronted with an amazing view of the tree in the lobby against the spectacular ceiling and Mezzanine.
The next time you are in the lobby at the Hotel Boulderado, look up and really study the panels of the stained-glass ceiling. If you look long enough, you will start to notice that the color and clarity of the "center squares" are quite different from the rest of the ceiling. Rumor has it that the glass used in the center squares were from the original stained-glass ceiling.
In a follow-up to yesterday's post, this black-and-white photograph shows the damage done to our lobby's original stained-glass ceiling in 1959. That Halloween, an early season snow storm hit Boulder and dumped heavy, wet snow across the city. The weight was too much for the skylights built into the the Hotel Boulderado's roof, which had been installed to allow the bright Colorado sunshine to stream through the stained glass into the lobby. One of the skylights broke, and the snow and debris fell through the canopy to the lobby's floor. Luckily, it was about 7:00am when it happened, and most of our guests were still sleeping in, so there were no injuries. I'm sure, however, that whoever was working behind the Front Desk that morning found this to be a very unique "wake up call."
This is my absolutely positively FAVORITE photo of the Hotel Boulderado that isn't available to the public, and I'll share why. This innocent looking photo is the only color photograph we have of the original stained-glass ceiling. You aren't able to see more because by this time, the ceiling had been damaged and the glass was waiting to be taken down.
Just love this photo showing off both our skeleton bride and the Mezzanine ceiling!
This photo was taken from our 5th floor and shows you the "interior courtyard," or more simply, the empty space between the stained glass canopy ceiling and the roof.
Here is a shot of our Mezzanine as seen from the southwest corner. This vantage point shows off the ceiling and the staircase in addition to all the classic woodwork and decor.
Here's a shot of our stained glass canopy ceiling from a different angle, so that you also see the west area of the Mezzanine and our Front Desk.
Here is a strangely angled close up shot of the stained glass canopy ceiling that sits over the lobby and Mezzanine of the Hotel Boulderado. Rumor has it that the glass used in those smaller centered squares were from the original stained glass ceiling that broke in 1959.
Here is a glimpse of the interior courtyard at the Hotel Boulderado -- also known as the space between the roof and above the stained glass canopy ceiling that perches over the lobby. This vantage point is from the fourth floor of the Historic Section.
Here's the stained-glass ceiling as seen from below, in the lobby. Whether you're close to it or further away, the beauty carries over any distance.
This shot of the Hotel Boulderado's stained-glass ceiling is a great one because it shows how the natural light filters through beginning in the afternoon. That light comes from skylights that were built into the hotel's roof to let that natural Colorado sunshine into the lobby.
When it comes to the Hotel Boulderado's lobby, many people are so taken with the staircase and stained-glass ceiling that they fail to notice something else -- the tile floor. The lobby tile floor is still original from 1909, including the bits that extend into Q's Restaurant. The designs vary on where you are in the lobby, but overall it's meant to give you a Native American motif. This was done intentionally to honor the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes who used to summer in the Boulder area. Legend has it the Hotel Boulderado was built on the site of their wigwam, the place where they would come together and gather, meet, and celebrate with each other. In this way, I like to think of the Hotel Boulderado as one of Boulder's wigwams, since people often use the hotel as a point of contact for meetings, weddings, celebrations, and visiting friends and family members.
A dazzling shot of our famous stained-glass ceiling. Expect more of these throughout the 365 Days of Boulderado Photos series. This one shows off the warm golden glow that filters through in the late afternoon.
Here's one of those "behind the scenes" shots I promised. Few people realize when they look up at the stained-glass ceiling in our lobby that the ceiling is no where close to the roof. In reality, there is a three-story "gap" between the stained glass and the roof. This gap was known as the interior courtyard when the Hotel Boulderado first opened in 1909, and back then, some of the rooms actually had windows that looked into the interior courtyard.
