Points of Pride

Arts

Best public rose garden

Iowa State's Reiman Gardens has been named the best public rose garden in the U.S.

Most Christian Petersen sculptures

Iowa State holds the nation's largest campus public collection of sculptures by Christian Petersen, who was artist-in-residence from 1934 to 1955.

Most beautiful campus

Iowa State's campus includes over 600 public works of art and was rated as one of America's 25 most beautiful in the 1991 book The Campus as a Work of Art.

Carillon

The 10-bell carillon chime installed in the Campanile in 1899 was the first scientifically tuned bell chime outside of England; the carillon has 50 bells today.

Building of the 20th Century

Iowa State University's Stephens Auditorium has been selected as Iowa's "Building of the 20th Century" by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Iowa Chapter.

Most Grant Wood murals

Iowa State has the largest Grant Wood murals in the nation-two WPA projects located in Parks Library titled "Breaking the Sod" and "When Tillage Begins, Other Arts Follow."

Seamless curtain

The main stage curtain in C.Y. Stephens Auditorium is seamless, made entirely of silk, measures 85 by 35 feet and weighs 3,000 pounds; it was woven in Kyoto, Japan, on the world's largest continuous loom.

Accredited museum

The University Museums at Iowa State is one of only 10 percent of museums in the nation to be accredited by the American Association of Museums.

Medallion site

Iowa State's central campus was one of only three university campuses to make the American Society of Landscape Architect's 1999 centennial listing of "Medallion Sites."