original antique american chicago post office building souvenir card tray comprised of cast zine or spelter with a faint copper plating. of brass. the detailed metal card tray has a nice art nouveau style border surrounding the embossed post office building. the tray measures 8 1/4 x 3 1/2 inches. the chicago federal building in chicago, illinois was constructed from 1898-1905 for the purpose of housing the midwest's federal courts, main post office, and other government bureaus. on the location of the chicago federal building stood an 1879 government building which was demolished to make way for the new building. the building was designed in the beaux-arts style by architect henry ives cobb. the building was designed in such a way that if looked at from the top, it would resemble a the greek cross atop a high base. the chicago federal building consisted of a total of 16 floors, 8 of which were housed in its massive dome, and a basement. the foundation was supported by wooden pile driven 72 feet below street level. more than $2,000,000 were spent on the interior decoration of the chicago federal building. the interior was topped off with a 300 ft high octagonal rotunda, inspired by imperial roman architecture covered with a large romanesque-style dome. the rotunda's 100 ft diameter made it larger than that of the united states capitol in washington, d.c. the federal building was also the tallest capitol-style building constructed in chicago, with the exception of the 1893 world's columbian exposition buildings, all of which were demolished. under the dome, there was a large public space with separate floors around the perimeter. the building was demolished in 1965, and the 45-floor kluczynski federal building, designed by ludwig mies van der rohe, was built in its place.