Statue of Liberty
New York, United States
15.10.2011
A monumental icon standing proudly in **New York Harbor**, the **Statue of Liberty** has greeted millions with her unwavering torch, symbolizing hope and enlightenment for over a century. This majestic colossus, officially named "Liberty Enlightening the World," was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984, recognized for its universal symbolism as a beacon of freedom and democracy, and for its extraordinary artistic and technical achievement.
A Gift of Friendship
The genesis of this colossal statue traces back to **France** in the mid-19th century. The idea was conceived by **Édouard René de Laboulaye**, a French jurist and politician, who proposed a gift from the people of **France** to the people of the **United States** to commemorate the alliance during the American Revolution and celebrate the abolition of slavery. The celebrated French sculptor **Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi** was commissioned to design the statue. He envisioned a robed female figure representing Libertas, the Roman goddess of liberty, holding a torch aloft and a tablet inscribed with the date of the American Declaration of Independence, **July 4, 1776**.
Architectural Marvel and Symbolism
The internal skeletal framework, a remarkable feat of engineering, was designed by **Gustave Eiffel**, the renowned builder of the **Eiffel Tower**. This innovative structure allowed the copper skin to move independently, preventing cracking from thermal expansion. Standing on **Liberty Island** (formerly **Bedloe's Island**), the statue's features are steeped in symbolism: the torch represents enlightenment; the tablet, law; and the broken shackle and chain at her feet, the triumph over tyranny and oppression. She embodies not only liberty for the **United States** but also universal concepts of freedom and human rights.
Construction and Dedication
The statue was constructed in sections in **France** over several years and then disassembled into 350 individual pieces, packed into 214 crates, and shipped across the **Atlantic Ocean** aboard the French frigate **Isère**. Upon arrival in 1885, it was reassembled on its specially designed pedestal, crafted by American architect **Richard Morris Hunt**. Fundraising for the pedestal proved challenging until newspaper publisher **Joseph Pulitzer** initiated a campaign that mobilized thousands of Americans to contribute. The **Statue of Liberty** was formally dedicated on **October 28, 1886**, by President **Grover Cleveland**. For decades thereafter, she served as the first glimpse of America for millions of immigrants passing through **Ellis Island**, becoming an enduring symbol of welcome and opportunity.
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Made in Paris by the French sculptor Bartholdi, in collaboration with Gustave Eiffel (who was responsible for the steel framework), this towering monument to liberty was a gift from France on the centenary of American independence. Inaugurated in 1886, the sculpture stands at the entrance to New York Harbour and has welcomed millions of immigrants to the United States ever since.
The Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World; French: La Liberté éclairant le monde) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture of a robed and crowned woman on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of France, was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, and its metal framework built by Gustave Eiffel. The statue was dedicated on October 28, 1886.
The statue is a figure of a classically draped woman, inspired by the Roman goddess of liberty, Libertas. She holds a torch above her head with her right hand, and in her left hand carries a tabula ansata inscribed JULY IV MDCCLXXVI (July 4, 1776, in Roman numerals), the date of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. With her left foot she steps on a broken chain and shackle, commemorating the national abolition of slavery following the American Civil War.
In 1865, the French historian and abolitionist Édouard de Laboulaye proposed a monument to commemorate the upcoming centennial of U.S. independence (1876), the perseverance of American democracy and the liberation of the nation's slaves. The Franco-Prussian War delayed progress until 1875, when Laboulaye proposed that the people of France finance the statue and the United States provide the site and build the pedestal. Bartholdi completed the head and the torch-bearing arm before the statue was fully designed, and these pieces were exhibited for publicity at international expositions. The torch-bearing arm was displayed at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, and in Madison Square Park in Manhattan from 1876 to 1882. Fundraising proved difficult, especially for the Americans; publisher Joseph Pulitzer of the New York World started a drive for donations to finish the project. The statue was built in France, shipped overseas in crates, and assembled on the completed pedestal on what was then called Bedloe's Island. The statue's completion was marked by New York's first ticker-tape parade and a dedication ceremony presided over by President Grover Cleveland.
The statue became an icon of freedom and of the United States, seen as a symbol of welcome to immigrants arriving by sea. The statue was administered by the United States Lighthouse Board until 1901 and then by the Department of War; since 1933, it has been maintained by the National Park Service as part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument, and is a major tourist attraction. Limited numbers of visitors can access the rim of the pedestal and the interior of the statue's crown from within; public access to the torch has been barred since 1916.
