Panama Canal Administration Building

Deceptively practical, the Administration Building for the Panama Canal holds offices and business headquarters, it's true—but the breathtaking murals installed on the ceiling of the inner rotunda merit a sightseeing visit all by themselves. Four representational scenes depict the epic saga of building the Canal, covering around 1,000 square feet in memory of the enormous process. William B. Van Ingen, a New York muralist known for his work in the Washington D.C. Library of Congress and in the Philadelphia U.S. Mint, was commissioned to create these massive images. They were installed in 1915, only a year after the Canal was opened to trade, and this building was inaugurated. When these artistic masterpieces are combined with the hilltop views of the Canal and part of Panama City, they make a truly worthwhile trip. The building is closed on weekends, but sometimes visitors can ask nicely and be allowed to enter just to see the murals.