10 striking images from President Obama's second inauguration

Hundreds of thousands of Americans flock to the National Mall to watch the encore swearing-in of our 44th president

The second inauguration
(Image credit: AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

While the president and his family began inauguration day by attending church, thousands upon thousands of people were busy camping out on the National Mall. As many as 700,000 visitors, in fact, were there Monday to listen to President Obama's speech, as well as performances from James Taylor, Kelly Clarkson, and Beyonce. Here, a look at the ceremony in pictures.

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Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.