The National Archives closed to the public early on Wednesday afternoon, after two people dumped red powder onto the case that holds the U.S. Constitution.
The two individuals were immediately detained by security after the incident around 2:30 p.m., the Archives said in a press release, and the Rotunda and galleries closed soon after.
The identity of the two people, their motive for dumping the red powder, and the contents of the powder itself all remain unclear. The incident is under investigation, the Archives said.
Climate change activism group Declare Emergency confirmed to News4 that two of their members were taken into custody at the National Archives. Declare Emergency is the same group responsible for red paint thrown on a case holding Degas' "Little Dancer" sculpture last April.
Video posted to social media shows two men standing in the Archives Rotunda, in front of the case holding the Constitution, with red powder dusting them and the case behind them. As security guards stand to the side of the men and the case, the two men make what appear to be pre-prepared statements about climate change.
"We all deserve clean water, air and a livable climate," one of the men says in the video.
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As the two men continue talking, security guards can be seen in the video ushering other people out of the Rotunda, and approaching the men, trying to get them to leave the area.
"The National Archives Rotunda is the sanctuary for our nation's founding documents," Dr. Colleen Shogan, Archivist of the United States, said in the release. "They are here for all Americans to view and understand the principles of our nation. We take such vandalism very seriously and we will insist that the perpetrators be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
The National Archives building is expected to open on schedule Thursday morning. Normal hours are from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with last admission 30 minutes before closing, according to the National Archives website.
There is not yet any information available on the status of the U.S. Constitution document itself, or whether only the encasement was affected, a spokesperson for the National Archives said in a phone call.
D.C. Police arrested the two individuals, the spokesperson said.
