THE STATUE OF LIBERTY

The Statue of Liberty officially known as the Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World was a gift of friendship from France in recognition of the friendship established during the American Revolution.

The statue dedicated on October 28, 1886 was a joint effort between America and France. It was agreed upon that the American people were to build the pedestal, and the French people were responsible for the Statue and its assembly in the United States. In both countries various forms of entertainment and lotteries were organized to raise funds.

In America, fund raising for the pedestal was going particularly slowly, and Joseph Pulitzer (who established the Pulitzer Prize) used his newspaper to criticize both the rich and the middle class who failed to finance and donate. Pulitzer's campaign was a success, and it also helped to promote his newspaper adding about 50,000 subscribers in the course of the statue campaign effort.

The statue is made of pure Norwegian copper on a framework of steel designed by Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel. The tablet held in the statue’s left hand represents a book of law with the text "JULY IV MDCCLXXVI" (July 4, 1776) commemorating the date of the United States Declaration of Independence. The seven rays of crown represent the seven seas and continents of the world.

Various sources cite different models for the face of the statue sculptured by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi. One indicated the widow of Isaac Singer, the sewing-machine industrialist, the other – Bartholdi’s mother.

The Statue disassembled into 350 individual pieces arrived in New York Harbor on June 17, 1885 on board the French frigate Isere and was re-assembled on her new pedestal in four months' time.

The Statue of Liberty was a real lighthouse from 1886 to 1902. There was an electric plant on the island to generate power for the light.

There is a sister statue in Paris (and hundreds of others around the world) standing by the river Seine. It faces west, towards the original Liberty in New York Harbor.

The Statue of Liberty is a popular icon that has appeared in over 30 movies.