When the Statue of Liberty was erected in America. Who gave America the Statue of Liberty: history and interesting facts
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At first glance, everything is known about the Statue of Liberty. It was presented to the United States by the French for the centenary of independence. The monument, created by Frederick Bartholdi and Gustave Eiffel, was inaugurated on Liberty Island at the mouth of the Hudson River on October 28, 1886. "Lady Liberty", meeting ships arriving in New York, is very ponderous. It contains 204 tons, of which 90 are copper blocks with which the figure is lined.
It is these 90 tons that have been the subject of heated debate among historians for many years. different countries. It is clear that the supplier of such a huge batch of non-ferrous metal should have made very good money - the cost of copper at that time averaged $2,500 per ton. But the question of who got this money is still open. No documents relating to the purchase of copper have been preserved, and in the memoirs of people involved in the creation of the Statue of Liberty, the topic of the origin of the metal is strangely hushed up.
Some historical background:
The creation of the monument was entrusted to the sculptor and architect Frederic Bartholdi. A deadline was set - by 1876 it was necessary to complete the monument, timed to coincide with the centenary of the US Declaration of Independence. It is believed that this is a joint Franco-American project. Americans worked on the pedestal, and the statue itself was created in France. In New York, all parts of the Statue of Liberty were assembled into a single whole.
After the start of construction, it became clear that much more funds were needed than originally planned. On both sides of the ocean, a large-scale fundraising campaign, lotteries, charity concerts, and other events were initiated. When calculating the design parameters of a huge statue of Bartholdi, the help of an experienced engineer was required. Alexandre Gustav Eiffel, the creator of the Eiffel Tower, personally designed the strong iron support and frame that allows the statue's copper shell to move freely while maintaining the balance of the monument itself.
Americans were reluctant to part with funds, because there were difficulties in collecting the required amount, so Joseph Pulitzer wrote a series of articles on the pages of his World newspaper, addressing representatives of the upper and middle classes and urging them to allocate money for a good cause. Criticism was extremely harsh, and it had an effect
By August 1885, the United States managed to raise the required amount, by which time the French had already completed their part of the work and brought parts of the statue to New York. The Statue of Liberty was divided into 350 parts and transported on the frigate Ysere in 214 boxes. For 4 months, all parts of the monument were assembled, and with a huge gathering of people, on October 26, 1886, the opening ceremony took place legendary monument. It so happened that the gift for the 100th anniversary was 10 years late. It is worth noting that the hand with the torch was collected even earlier and was even exhibited at an exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876.
Now back to the material:
They tried to solve the riddle by comparing the lining material with samples taken from the largest mines in the world. The experiment made even more confusion, versions grew like mushrooms after rain. Copper samples similar in composition of impurities were found in the English mines in Swansea, in the German Mansfield and in the Spanish mining region of Huelva. Norwegian scientists have little doubt that Bartholdi purchased 90 tons of copper from the Visnes mine, which was developed in the 1870s on Karmoy Island in the North Sea. At the same time, the company that owns this mine was managed by a Frenchman and was headquartered in Paris. Norwegians so wanted to consider themselves "suppliers building material for American Liberty that they ordered spectrographic analysis from Bell Laboratories. His results showed that the copper from the North Sea was very similar to that of the statue, but not identical. And this gives a chance to develop another theory about the origin of the metal - this time Russian.
Nizhny Tagil, Copper mine. fox mountain
From the Urals to Paris
Miniakhmet Mutalov, a Bashkir scientist, candidate of geological and mineralogical sciences, and employees of the Vysokogorsky mining and processing plant have no doubt that copper for Lady Liberty was purchased from the Demidov industrialists, who owned the Nizhny Tagil mines. True, they are guided by their experience in mining, and not by the results of research from American laboratories. Nevertheless, one cannot but agree with them that in the 1870s, Russian copper was indeed very popular in the West, where it was called "Old Sable". The Demidov mines undoubtedly could provide the required volume of production. In 1814, a huge copper quarry was opened on Mount Vyiskaya near Nizhny Tagil, and by 1850 copper production there reached 10,000 tons per year. By comparison, the Norwegian mine - the number one candidate - then produced only 3,000 tons.
Nizhny Tagil copper was sold mainly in the markets Western Europe, despite the fact that the mine was very far from the consumer. In 1851 on the first world exhibition in London, she received three bronze medals, and in 1867 the Demidovs won first place at the Paris Exhibition.
In France, they heard about the successes of Russian miners before. French specialists often came to the Urals to study. In the Nizhny Tagil archives for the 19th century, hundreds of contracts with foreigners who were hired by the Demidovs have been preserved. They employed 42 foreigners - British, Swiss, Germans, Belgians, Italians and 14 French. The personal consultant of the industrialists was a mining engineer from France Leple, and his compatriot named Bokar worked as the administrator of the Nizhny Tagil plant. Such close cooperation greatly contributed to the establishment of channels for the supply of metal to a Western buyer.
Secret signs
Conspiracy sources also testify in favor of the version about the Russian origin of the Statue of Liberty. It is known that Bartholdi and Eiffel were members of the French Masonic lodge, and it was the "freemasons" who helped them raise 3.5 million francs for the manufacture of the statue. The construction of the pedestal was financed by the Masonic Lodge of New York. Media mogul Joseph Pulitzer donated about $100,000 to the monument, with the condition that a note with his name and the words "Russian emigrant and Jew" be placed at the base of the monument. At the same time, according to official data, he was born in Hungary and it was from there that he moved to the United States.
It is known that French and American Freemasons maintained rather close relations, including those of a business nature, with Russian "freemasons". And the Demidovs occupied a very high position in the Masonic hierarchy of Russia. After the uprising of the Decembrists, the emperor banned Masonic lodges, and they had to go underground. "Freemasons" from the capital's aristocracy and the bourgeoisie hastily got rid of images of compasses, trowels and pyramids on clothes, carriages and facades of houses. The Demidovs were the only ones who continued to openly display Masonic symbols - a silver hammer and a tool that looked like a trowel were depicted on their family coat of arms.
Pavel Pavlovich Demidov, who in the 1870s headed the complex of Nizhny Tagil enterprises, spent his youth in Paris. In the mid-1860s, after graduating from the Faculty of Law of St. Petersburg University, he continued his education under the guidance of a well-known scientist, publicist, political figure and ... Freemason Edward Rene de Laboulet. At the same time, the young, promising sculptor Frederic Bartholdi was sculpting a bust of his idolized Laboulet.
On one of the summer days of 1865, the flower of French Freemasonry gathered in Laboulet's house: Oscar and Edmund Lafayette, grandchildren of the Marquis Lafayette - the Masonic brother of George Washington, historian Henry Martin and, of course, Bartholdi. Edouard Rene shared an idea with his friends: what a beautiful gesture on the part of the French Republicans it would be to give the Americans a memorial symbolizing freedom as a token of their friendship! Contemporaries called Laboulet "the main admirer of America in France", among other things, the gift was to highlight the contrast between American democracy and the repressive political methods of the Second Empire. For the 31-year-old Bartholdi, who did not hesitate to pick up the idea of an older comrade, this was a chance to show his talent to the whole world.
It wasn't built right away.
The implementation of the idea had to wait until the end of the Franco-Prussian War. In 1871, Laboulet invited Bartholdi to go to America and do everything necessary so that the monument was opened on July 4, 1876 - the centennial anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Without money and a sketch of the monument, but with a pile of letters of recommendation to the American brothers, the sculptor sailed to America. The idea of the statue appeared in his head when he was already sailing to New York - Frederick quickly made a sketch.
Three years later, Bartholdi returned to France, where he established the Franco-American Union to raise funds for the construction of the monument "Liberty that illuminates the world." Soon he began work on its creation together with the Parisian company Gaget, Gauthier & Cie.
The sculptor wrote off the face of "Freedom" from his mother. First, he made a four-foot clay model, then a nine-foot plaster model, then he began to proportionally increase each of its parts by nine times ... But the deadlines were delayed due to a constant lack of funds.
Although more than 100,000 French people donated to the monument, the Masons managed to raise the necessary money only by 1880. Probably, the missing amount was presented to them by the Americans. It was not for nothing that Bartholdi invited United States Secretary of the Treasury Levi P. Morton to install the first piece of copper cladding on the big toe of the statue's left foot. On July 4, 1884, two months after the completion of the work, the monument was officially presented to the US Ambassador to Paris, Levi Morton. For another two years, Lady Liberty stood in Paris, waiting for a pedestal to be built for her in Hudson Bay.
On August 5, 1884, in the pouring rain, which forced the cancellation of the Masonic parade (there would still not be enough space for it on a tiny island), the ceremony of laying the first stone in the pedestal of the statue was held. Then under it was that famous “box with a secret”, in which, in addition to the names of the Masonic presidents and Pulitzer’s strange statement about his Russian roots, they say, the names of all the people who took part in the creation of “Lady Liberty” are indicated, but for some reason reasons for not admitting it.
In June 1885, disassembled and packed in 214 containers, the statue arrived in New York. It took another 15 months to collect it, and finally, on October 28, 1886, a gift from France appeared before the Americans in all its glory. The opening ceremony of the monument was presided over by the President of the United States Freemason Grover Cleveland. The monument was consecrated by the Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of New York, Henry Potter, also a member of the Freemasons Lodge. Grand Master Senator Chauncey M. Depew delivered the commencement speech.
And only Russian Freemasons could not openly announce their participation in the construction of the monument - most likely, they would not have been praised for this in their homeland. Perhaps that is why all the documents evidencing the sale of 90 tons of Russian copper to France were carefully destroyed.
Marriage of convenience
In general, the policy of the Russian tsars in relation to lodges was not consistent. So, while pursuing "free masons" in his country, Alexander III nevertheless actively collaborated with the French Masons. The desire not to get involved in international adventures and wars pushed him to rapprochement with Paris, where at that time the lodges ruled the ball. The sovereign had no choice - Great Britain encroached on Russian territories, Prussia was too aggressive. Alexander had to accept the foreign policy line for rapprochement with France, which was offered to him by Foreign Minister Girs.
Alexander only benefited from cooperation with Masonic France - huge investments flowed into the country. In 1888, Gosquier, an emissary of French banks, arrived in St. Petersburg for negotiations with Finance Minister Ivan Vyshnegradsky, who later began to manage the capitals of all members of the royal family. In November 1888, a decree was issued to issue a Russian gold four percent loan.
Initially, its amount was only 500 million francs. But already in February of the following year, Alexander ordered the issue of a consolidated loan of the first series in the amount of 175 million rubles for the conversion of five percent bonds of numerous railway loans of the 1870s. The French, who saw Russia as a guarantor of protection against the Prussian threat, actively subscribed to it, and thereby stimulated St. Petersburg to expand business contacts.
The deal went through, and already in April, the so-called loan of consolidated Russian bonds of the second series appeared, in the amount of 310.5 million rubles. It was released in conjunction with the Rothschild bank and was also a huge success. After that, the French began the actual "economic occupation" of Russia. They invested in building railways and factories, cut down mines and erected oil rigs. This continued almost until the outbreak of the First World War.
Perhaps if Russia and France had made friends a little earlier, the sale of copper for the ambitious Bartholdi project would not have had to be hidden. But now the historical truth is no longer so important, all the same, the statue remained in history not as a Masonic symbol, but as a talisman of emigrants coming to New World in search of a new life.
But look at another example from history, like one person, but with. Yes, and if you remember something about major transactions, for example The original article is on the website InfoGlaz.rf Link to the article from which this copy is made -
Jeroen van Luin / flickr.com Alan Strakey / flickr.com Liberty Island, New York, USA (Delta Whiskey / flickr.com) Statue of Liberty, New York, USA (Mobilus In Mobili / flickr.com) Andy Atzert / flickr .com Anthony Quintano / flickr.com Liberty Island, New York (Phil Dolby / flickr.com) Anthony Quintano / flickr.com Chris Tse / flickr.com sylvain.collet / flickr.com Plaque in the left hand of the Statue of Liberty with date of adoption Declaration of Independence (Pete Bellis / flickr.com) ali sinan köksal / flickr.com Jon Dawson / flickr.com Tom Thai / flickr.com Wilhelm Joys Andersen / flickr.com David Ohmer / flickr.com Justin / flickr.com Statue of Liberty Torch (Mike Clarke / flickr.com) Top view of the Statue of Liberty (StatueLibrtyNPS / flickr.com)
The Statue of Liberty is the main symbol of the American people, the idea of freedom. In addition, this is another symbol of the New York metropolis.
The majestic building in America is located on Liberty Island. Approximately 3,000 meters southwest of Manhattan Island, New York. Until the year 56 of the last century, the island in the USA, which now adorns the Statue of Liberty, was referred to as Bedloe. Although at the beginning of the century it was already nicknamed the "Island of Freedom".
In the right hand of the statue, which is 12.8 meters long, a torch burns. On the left is a tablet, the length of which is 4.14 meters. It bears the date of the Declaration of Independence of the United States from Great Britain.
Broken chains are seen under the feet of the statue, which, in turn, symbolizes liberation. On the head, the distance from the chin to the back of the head is 5.26 meters. The length of the nose is 1.37 meters.
Statue of Liberty 7 Prong Crown, New York (sylvain.collet / flickr.com)
The statue is crowned with a crown of 7 teeth. It is a symbol of the seven seas and at the same time the seven continents. According to the geography the globe seven continents: Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Australia, Antarctica. Seven seas mean the same number of parts of the oceans. Also, windows are made in the crown, which shine like diamonds in the sun and decorate it.
Another fact is that visitors usually walk 192 steps to climb the pedestal. And in order to climb to the very top, you need to overcome 356 steps. The size of the statue is very impressive. The total height of the structure is 93 meters. And the height of the particular statue is 46 meters.
To visit this attraction, you need to get to the island by ferry. Usually they climb to the very top, from where you can admire the stunning panorama of New York and its harbor, indescribable.
Who gave the Statue of Liberty to America?
Despite the fact that the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of America and New York, it was by no means made in the States. Where did she come from then?
Tablet in the left hand of the Statue of Liberty with the date of the Declaration of Independence (Pete Bellis / flickr.com)
The attraction is interesting because it is a gift from France on Independence Day to the States. The statue was designed and made by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, a French sculptor. The main idea is to make a gift to America on the centenary of the Declaration of Independence.
The widow Isabella Boyer posed for the statue. An interesting fact is that it was the wife of Singer, the American creator of the famous brand of sewing machines. This lady was not the last person in the capital and at the same time a beautiful woman.
An interesting fact - the Statue of Liberty was originally planned to be placed not in New York, but in Port Said - in Egypt. But the Egyptian authorities considered this project too expensive. Therefore, it was decided to transfer the building to the USA, where it will rise on the island of the New York metropolis.
Design and preparation for construction
The authorities of the States undertook to build a pedestal, and in Paris they made the statue itself. The French undertook to install it on the spot.
Top view of Liberty Article, New York, USA (Phil Dolby / flickr.com)
In order to collect the necessary amount for the implementation of the project, special measures were taken in both states. In France, a certain amount of money was raised thanks to lotteries, entertainment events, and donations from citizens. In America, theatrical performances, exhibitions of artists, fights in the ring and auctions were held to collect the required amount.
In France, the author of the construction, Bartholdi, needed a technically educated person to construct the statue. Another interesting fact is that this person was destined to become the architect Gustave Eiffel, whose most famous work in the future was the Eiffel Tower. He needed to design a steel support for the structure and a framework to support the tall statue in an upright position.
For a statue high altitude a huge amount of copper was needed. There are different interesting versions about the place of its extraction. For example, in Russia, in Nizhny Tagil. But according to the results of the study, it turned out that the copper was from Norway. The concrete base on which the Statue of Liberty stands required a large amount of cement. The German company for the production of concrete undertook to deliver it.
The formation of the amount needed for the construction was not fast enough. Joseph Pulitzer even urged American citizens to support the construction. His speeches significantly influenced the speed of the implementation of the plan. The pedestal was designed by an architect named Richard Morris Hunt.
Erection of the Statue of Liberty
The construction of the massive foundation near Manhattan in New York began on August 5, 1885. They built it in a little less than 9 months, and the work ended on April 22, 1886. Steel lintels are inserted inside the stone pedestal. The metal beams connected to them are directed upwards to go into the Eiffel frame inside the structure itself.
France made its gift in the summer. The length of the entire structure turned out to be almost 34 meters. For transportation, it was dismantled into 350 fragments, which were distributed among many boxes. They were transported to the United States on the Ysere ship. After 11 months, the Statue of Liberty appeared near New York, where it was erected in 4 months of work.
Officially, the Statue of Liberty was opened in 1886 in New York. The ceremony was attended by Grover Cleveland, then ruling in the United States, and more than a thousand residents and guests of the city.
History of the Statue of Liberty in the United States of America
The Statue of Liberty near New York City sits on its massive granite base inside Fort Wood, built for defensive purposes in the early 19th century. Until the beginning of the 20th century, the lighthouse service was responsible for the operation of the facility. After this role was taken over by the military in the United States.
On October 15, by decree of the US government, Fort Wood, in combination with the Statue of Liberty, acquired the status of a monument to the American nation in the United States.
"a symbol of New York and the USA" Jon Dawson / flickr.com
In 1933, the US National Park Service became responsible for the Statue of Liberty. In 1937, the size of the monument grew and began to coincide with the outline of Bedloe. In 1956, the name of the island changed, it acquired a new name - Liberty Island.
In 82 of the last century, under the influence of the head of the country, Reagan, a project was created to restore the Statue of Liberty. As a result, an amount of 87 million dollars was collected. In 1984, restoration work began, during which the old torch was replaced with a modern one with gold coating. Another interesting fact is that 24-carat gold was used for coating. In 1986, the renovated Statue of Liberty welcomed everyone to visit it on the occasion of the anniversary.
In early September 2001, due to the tragedy in the Twin Towers, the island, along with the Statue of Liberty, became inaccessible to those wishing to visit it. And only in 2004, the Statue of Liberty was again open to the public, but access to the top was still closed.
Since July 4, 2009, by order of US President Obama, it has become possible to visit the top of the Statue of Liberty. In 2011, elevators with stairs were updated in honor of the next anniversary. In addition, for the convenience of visitors, an escalator was installed here. In 2012, the Statue of Liberty became fully accessible to New Yorkers and visitors to the United States.
The Statue of Liberty is one of the symbols of America and New York. It has been attracting tourists for many years and is place of worship among Americans.
October 28, 1886 under cannon shots, the roar of sirens and incessant fireworks, the most famous monument United States of America - the legendary Statue of Liberty. From that day on, every ship entering the port of New York meets a stone statue of a woman with a torch of freedom in her hand, outstretched to the sky.
History of the Statue of Liberty
Surprisingly, main symbol freedom of the United States - the brainchild of French masters. It was in Paris that the Statue was born. Then it was dismantled into parts and transported through. Here it was assembled again and installed on a powerful plinth, which the Americans themselves had built by Bedloe's Island, now Liberty Island. Liberty Island, on which the statue is located, is federal property in the state of New York. The island is located closer to the coast of New Jersey, which is why some mistakenly attribute it to the state of New Jersey.
The idea of creating the Statue of Liberty appeared in 1865 with the academician Edouard de Laboulaye. The author of the Statue of Liberty itself is a sculptor from Alsace, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, at that time still a young and unknown master. A few years earlier, Bartholdi had conceived the construction of a huge lighthouse on the Suez Canal. According to his plans, this lighthouse should be in the form of a female figure. In the hands of the sculpture was supposed to hold a torch, the light from which was supposed to illuminate the way for the sailors. But at one time, the idea with a lighthouse on the Suez Canal was rejected. That is why the young sculptor responded with great enthusiasm to the idea of Edouard de Laboulaye.
When creating the sculpture, Bartholdi repeatedly turned to Delacroix's painting "Liberty Leading the People to the Barricades". It was the image of Liberty from this canvas that became the main prototype for the Statue of Liberty. According to one version, Bartholdi even had an American model: the beautiful, recently widowed Isabella Boyer, wife of Isaac Singer, a sewing machine entrepreneur. "...Being a beautiful, French widow of an American entrepreneur, she proved to be a suitable model for Bartholdi's Statue of Liberty." (Ruth Brandon, "The Singer and the Sewing Machine: A Capitalist Romance").
To create the statue, engineer Gustave Eiffel was invited, who would later become famous as the author of the famous. Eiffel developed an ingenious metal frame structure supported by a central support post. On this movable frame, the outer, that is, the visible shell of the statue, made of copper with a thickness of 2.4 millimeters, was strengthened. Bartholdi began by building a small figure, only 1.2 meters in size, and then made three more others, gradually making them larger. They were corrected and completed until the optimal variant was reached.
By mutual agreement, America was to build a pedestal, and - to create a statue and install it in the United States. To avoid financial difficulties, special funds were organized that were engaged in the search for funds. In France, funds were collected by arranging entertainment events and lotteries. They organized theatrical performances, art exhibitions, auctions and boxing fights. However, the accumulation of funds for the podium was slow, and Joseph Pulitzer (known as the founder of the Pulitzer Prize) issued an appeal in his newspaper "World" to support the fundraising for the project's fund. This had an effect and contributed to an increase in donations from the Americans.
The statue was completed in France in July 1884 and delivered to New York Harbor on June 17, 1885 aboard the French frigate Ysere. For transportation, the statue was disassembled into 350 parts and packed in 214 boxes. The statue was assembled on its new base in four months. The grand opening of the Statue of Liberty, at which US President Grover Cleveland spoke, took place on October 28, 1886 in the presence of thousands of spectators.
In 1984, the Statue of Liberty was inscribed on the World Heritage List. In 1986, before the centennial anniversary, the monument was temporarily closed for a thorough restoration and reopened to visitors on July 5, 1986.
Features of the Statue of Liberty
Today, the Statue of Liberty is one of the national symbols of the United States. Rising at the mouth of the Hudson at the entrance to New York Harbor, a woman in elegant, flowing clothes, carrying a torch, personifies the freedom and opportunities of the country. On her head is a crown with seven prongs representing the seven seas and seven continents. At the feet of a woman are the broken bonds of tyranny. In the woman's left hand, she holds a slab with the date of the American Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776, inscribed on it.
The statue was made from thin sheets of copper minted in wooden moulds. The formed sheets were then mounted on a steel frame.
The height of the Statue (by the way, it was originally called more pompously - “Freedom, bringing light to the world”) is 46 meters, so if we also take into account the 47-meter pedestal, the top of the torch is at a height of 93 meters above the ground. The weight of the monument is 205 tons. The length of the right hand, in which the torch is in, is 12.8 meters, and the index finger alone is 2.4 meters long, the width of the mouth is 91 centimeters.
A spiral staircase inside the statue leads tourists to the top. The statue is usually open to visitors, who usually arrive by ferry. The crown, which can be reached by stairs, offers extensive views of New York Harbor.
In 1972, the Museum of American Settlement was opened inside the Statue itself, which can be reached by a special elevator. The whole history of the country is presented here: from the ancestors - the Indians, who inhabited the then unknown continent, and up to the mass migration in the current century.
Opinions about the Statue of Liberty are completely contradictory. Nothing like this was seen in America before the erection of this sculpture. Connoisseurs noted the high technique of execution, the clarity of proportions and the gracefulness of lines. But opponents of those who recognized the Liberty Monument as the eighth wonder of the world noted that the symbol of Liberty in the form of a statue is interpreted too coldly and dispassionately. It is no coincidence that the epithet appeared that Freedom is “blind”, and greatness is transmitted only by large sizes.
However, evil tongues are not a hindrance to Freedom. Around the world, the Statue is considered the Symbol of the United States, embodying the democratic principles that this country is so proud of.
One of the most famous attractions in the United States, which is known not only indigenous people countries, but also each of us. The Statue of Liberty is located in New York - a monument that can be seen especially often in movies, as well as photographs of American tourists.
Opening memorial place was accompanied by a cannon volley, fireworks and the roar of sirens. The long-awaited event happened back in 1886. Since that time, ships entering the port of New York have met stone statue woman holding the torch of freedom in her hand.
As paradoxical as it may sound, but symbol of america was the brainchild of French masters. It was there that the statue appeared to the light for the first time. Disassembled in parts, she was sent on a voyage straight across the Atlantic Ocean. Already in New York, it was assembled and placed on a powerful plinth, already made by Native Americans. They installed a statue on Bedloe Island, which was later renamed Liberty Island.
The monument was conceived by Academician Edouard de Laboulaye in 1865, and the author of the work was Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, a sculptor from Alsace. The sculptor chose Bedloe Island for his own reasons, but in general, he represented the monument not only on it, but also in Port Said (Suez Canal). Bartholdi failed to realize his project “Egypt Bringing Light to Asia”, but for America the idea came in handy.
The project was approved in Congress in 1877, even though according to the plan, the sculpture was supposed to appear as early as 1876 on the day the US Declaration of Independence was signed. However, it was not immediately possible to collect the necessary amount of money for the construction of a masterpiece, the deadlines dragged on. Lady Liberty reached New York by July 17, 1885. For four months, the monument was collected together. There is one interesting fact related to the opening of the monument on October 28, 1886. The ceremony was held in the company of only men, and this despite the fact that the statue personifies the symbol of freedom. Only a little girl of eight years old and one woman were able to visit the island that day - the daughter of Lessens and the wife of Bartholdi.
What is the Statue of Liberty? The monument forms a steel frame weighing 125 tons. To design and build the structure, Gustav Eiffel was called in to help, who was replaced a little later by Maurice Koechlin. Inside the structure, you can move and climb to the very top along the spiral staircase. To get to observation deck 354 steps to be overcome. This path will seem easy after looking at the very top through one of the 25 windows and seeing an incredible panoramic view.
The top of the steel skeleton is covered with copper plates that form the silhouette of the monument. Copper for them was supplied from Russia. The symbol of freedom is also a broken shackle at one of the legs of the statue.
She was originally called "Freedom Bringing Light to the World", then renamed to the current one. The height of the sculpture is 46 meters. If you count all the elements of the statue together with the torch, then the height will be 93 meters. Weight reaches 205 tons.
The statue received status national monument in 1924, followed by Bedloe Island itself. Several times the monument was restored, new lighting was added.
Many people may have a question: “Who was the prototype of the statue?”. There are two versions. According to one of them, it is believed that Bartholdi was inspired by the image of Isabella Bayer (the widow of Isaac Singer). In another, they claim that the image belongs to his mother Charlotte.
inside the statue opened a museum in 1972, which can be reached by elevator. The museum provides information about the history of the settlement of the country. There are many conflicting opinions about the symbol of America. Someone spoke about the high technique of execution, the clarity and grace of the lines, and someone believes that it is impossible to talk about this statue as a symbol of freedom, it is too impassive and cold. Only opinions do not prevent the inhabitants of the United States, and the whole world in particular, from considering the Statue of Liberty a symbol of the country.
(Statue of Liberty, full name - Freedom, illuminating the world) is one of the most famous sculptures in the USA and in the world, often called the "symbol of New York and the USA", "the symbol of freedom and democracy", "Lady Liberty". This is a gift from French citizens for the centenary of the American Revolution.
The Statue of Liberty is located on Liberty Island, about 3 km southwest of the southern tip of Manhattan, one of the boroughs of New York. Until 1956, the island was called "Bedloe's Island", although it has been popularly called "Liberty Island" since the beginning of the 20th century.
The goddess of freedom holds a torch in her right hand and a tablet in her left. The inscription on the tablet reads "JULY IV MDCCLXXVI" ("July 4, 1776"), the date the Declaration of Independence was signed. With one foot, "Freedom" stands on broken chains.
Visitors walk 354 steps to the crown of the Statue of Liberty or 192 steps to the top of the pedestal. There are 25 windows in the crown, which symbolize earthly gems and heavenly rays that illuminate the world. The seven rays on the crown of the statue symbolize the seven seas and seven continents (the western geographical tradition has exactly seven continents).
The total weight of the copper used to cast the statue is 31 tons, while the total weight of its steel structure is 125 tons. The total weight of the cement base is 27,000 tons. The thickness of the copper coating of the statue is 2.37 mm.
The height from the ground to the tip of the torch is 93 meters, including the base and pedestal. The height of the statue itself, from the top of the pedestal to the torch, is 46 meters.
The statue was built from thin sheets of copper minted in wooden moulds. The formed sheets were then mounted on a steel frame.
Usually the statue is open to visitors, usually arriving by ferry. The crown, which can be reached by stairs, offers extensive views of New York Harbor. The museum, located in the pedestal (and accessible by elevator), houses an exhibition of the statue's history.
New Colossus
In 1883, American poet Emma Lazarus wrote The New Colossus, a sonnet dedicated to the Statue of Liberty. 20 years later, in 1903, it was engraved on a bronze plate and affixed to the wall in the museum, located on the pedestal of the statue. The famous last lines of "Freedom" in the Russian translation of V. Lazarus sound like this:
“To you, ancient lands,” she cries, silent
Lips not parted - to live in empty luxury,
And give me from the bottomless depths
Your outcasts, your downtrodden people,
Send me the outcasts, the homeless,
I’ll light a golden candle for them at the door!”
Creation of the Statue of Liberty
The creation of the statue was entrusted to the French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. It was conceived as a gift for the centenary of the Declaration of Independence in 1876. According to one version, Bartholdi even had a French model: the beautiful, recently widowed Isabella Boyer, wife of Issac Singer, a creator and entrepreneur in the field of sewing machines. “She was freed from the awkward presence of her husband, who left her with only the most desirable attributes in society: a fortune and children. From the very beginning of her career in Paris, she was a public figure. As the beautiful French widow of an American entrepreneur, she proved to be a suitable model for Bartholdi's Statue of Liberty."
By mutual agreement, America was to build a pedestal, and France was to create a statue and install it in the United States. However, the lack of money was felt on both sides Atlantic Ocean. In France, charitable donations, along with various entertainment events and a lottery, raised 2.25 million francs. In the United States, theatrical performances, art exhibitions, auctions, and boxing fights were held to raise funds.
Meanwhile, in France, Bartholdi needed the help of an engineer to resolve structural issues related to the construction of such a giant copper sculpture. Gustave Eiffel (the future creator of the Eiffel Tower) was commissioned to design a massive steel support and an intermediate support frame that would allow the statue's copper shell to move freely while maintaining an upright position. Eiffel handed over the detailed designs to his assistant, an experienced structural engineer, Maurice Koechlin. Interestingly, the copper for the statue is of Russian origin.
The site for the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, approved by an Act of Congress in 1877, was chosen by General William Sherman, taking into account the wishes of Bartholdi himself, on Bedloe Island, where a star-shaped fort had stood since the beginning of the 19th century.
Fundraising for the pedestal progressed slowly, and Joseph Pulitzer (of Pulitzer Prize fame) issued an appeal in his World newspaper to support fundraising for the project's fund.
By August 1885, funding for the pedestal, designed by the American architect Richard Morris Hunt, was completed, with the first stone laid on 5 August. Construction was completed on April 22, 1886. Built into the massive stonework of the pedestal are two square lintels of steel bars; they are connected by steel anchor beams that go up to become part of the Eiffel frame of the statue itself. Thus the statue and the pedestal are one.
The statue was completed by the French in July 1884 and delivered to New York Harbor on June 17, 1885 aboard the French frigate Ysere. For transportation, the statue was disassembled into 350 parts and packed in 214 boxes. (Her right hand, holding a torch, had already been on display at the Philadelphia World's Fair in 1876 and then at Madison Square in New York.) The statue was assembled on its new base in four months. The grand opening of the Statue of Liberty, which was addressed by US President Grover Cleveland, took place on October 28, 1886 in the presence of thousands of spectators. As a French gift for the centenary of the American Revolution, it was ten years too late.
Statue like a lighthouse
From the day of its discovery, the statue served as a navigational landmark and was used as a lighthouse. Three caretakers took turns keeping the fire in her torch for 16 years.
Statue as a cultural monument
History of the Statue of Liberty and the island on which it stands is a story of change. The statue was placed on a granite pedestal inside Fort Wood, built for the War of 1812, whose walls are laid out in the shape of a star. The US Lighthouse Service was responsible for maintaining the statue until 1901. After 1901, this mission was assigned to the War Department. By presidential decree of October 15, 1924, Fort Wood (and the statue on its grounds) was declared a national monument, the boundaries of which coincided with those of the fort.
On October 28, 1936, on the 50th anniversary of the unveiling of the statue, US President Franklin Roosevelt said: “Liberty and peace are living things. In order for them to continue to exist, each generation must protect them and put new life into them.
In 1933, maintenance of the national monument was transferred to the National Park Service. On September 7, 1937, the area of the national monument was enlarged to cover the entirety of Bedloe Island, which was renamed Liberty Island in 1956. On May 11, 1965, Ellis Island was also turned over to the National Park Service and became part of the Statue of Liberty National Memorial. In May 1982, President Ronald Reagan commissioned Lee Iacocca to lead a private sector drive to restore the Statue of Liberty. The restoration raised $87 million through a partnership between the National Park Service and the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Corporation, the most successful public-private collaboration in American history. In 1984, at the start of restoration work, the Statue of Liberty was inscribed on the List world heritage UNESCO. On July 5, 1986, the restored Statue of Liberty was re-opened to the public during the Liberty Weekend dedicated to its centenary.
Statue and security
The statue and the island were closed from September 11, 2001 to August 3, 2004 due to the terrorist attack on the World shopping center. On August 4, 2004, the monument was opened, but the statue itself, including the crown, remains closed. However, in May 2009, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced that the statue would be reopened for tours effective July 4, 2009.
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