The Beginnings Of The Statue Of Liberty
When you are coming to the city of New York for the first time, it would be a mistake not to place the Statue of Liberty at the top of your list of points of interest and attractions to see. It was initially conceptualized through the 1870s as a means of celebrating the centennial of the American Declaration of Independence by the United States history writer and French politician, Edouard Rene. However, now it is much more than just a historical landmark, representing the beliefs that the US is built upon and the independence of its people.
The Statue of Liberty was commissioned in 1876 being a joint project amongst the Americans and the French. Amazingly, the construction of the statue counted entirely on publicly contributed funds, rather than being backed by the government. It all began with a sculpture by the architect, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, who, some say, used the likeness of his mother, Charlotte Bartholdi, to create the face. Bartholdi, would likewise get the aid of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who would afterwards go on to design the classic Eiffel Tower, to design the iron structure that will tackle structural concerns.
Even though the French were occupied with establishing the exact Statue of Liberty National Monument, the Americans were hard at work with the foundation. The construction was assigned to American architect, Richard Morris Hunt, who developed the foundation in the form of an 11-pointed star and made it using granite. Even though the statue by itself already stood at 111 feet, the base was more than 194 feet in height, bringing the entire assembly to 305 feet. The foundation was finished by April of 1886.
Of course, the French still had to move the statue to the United States. Although it had been done by July of 1884, it needed to be disassembled into 350 individual items which were held in 214 crates. It arrived in New York Harbor barely under a year after the statue’s completion. It then required another 4 months to assemble the statue for a grand opening on October 26, 1886.
The Statue of Liberty National Monument holds significance beyond celebrating the American Declaration of Independence. It has become linked to immigration during the time since it was the first sight that will great immigrants as they came in from boats that would eventually reach Ellis Island. The iconic torch also signifies the spread of democracy as well as its virtues. The genuine torch is in fact on display in one of several exhibits inside the statue’s bottom, having been replaced throughout a restoration span that held up from 1984 to 1986 stemming from the initiatives of Ronald Reagan.
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