Statue of Liberty year of creation. The Statue of Liberty in the USA - the history of the American symbol of freedom and democracy

The Statue of Liberty has been one of the symbols of the United States for more than a century. But very many ideas about it are wrong, and something is extremely little known. Let's find out more about this unusual monument.

First of all, we note that officially it is called differently - "Illuminating the World of Freedom." The sculpture is located on the island of the same name, three kilometers southwest of Manhattan. For a long time it was called Bellow Island. The monument holds a torch in its right hand (which, as it were, “illuminates” the world), and in its left hand, a tablet with the date of the United States Declaration of Independence, written in Latin numerals. One of the legs of the “Illuminating” tramples on torn shackles.

The seven rays in the crown crowning the statue symbolically represent the seas and continents. And yet, what is the Statue of Liberty made of in the USA? It would seem that it should be steel or stone, judging by the perception.

However, not all so simple. Steel is present there - 125 tons. The sculptors also used 31 tons of copper, which covers it with a layer of just over two and a half millimeters. However, the figures for both steel and copper simply pale in comparison to the concrete base, which reaches twenty-seven thousand tons. Thin copper sheets are mounted on top of a steel frame. Together with the foundation and the pedestal, the height to the top of the torch reaches ninety-three meters.

Where was the Statue of Liberty made?

The monument symbolizing the USA was not actually made in America and not even in the Western Hemisphere!

The author of the sculpture is the Frenchman Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. The idea was to present it as a gift for the centenary of the United States. It is interesting that they were going to install it in the Egyptian Port Said and call it "The Light of Asia". However, the Cairo government decided not to spend money on installation and transportation.

When France and America entered into an agreement, they were supposed to make, respectively, the sculpture and installation at the expense of Paris, and the pedestal at the expense of Washington. But the material difficulties that arose on both sides of the ocean slowed things down.

What material was used for manufacturing?

It seems that we already know the answer to this question. But ... let's not rush. Copper for that very statue was either mined in Bashkiria or smelted in Nizhny Tagil. The pedestal under it is made of German cement.

However, that's not all! In addition to the sculpture itself, there are many copies of it. There are four in Paris alone; gilded version with a lantern instead of a torch in Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer. There are many other versions - for example, in one of the casinos in Las Vegas, in Japan, the beaten off head of the once-existing "freedom" in the Tretyakov Gallery, in Dnepropetrovsk, Lvov, Budapest, Riga.

After the September 11 tragedy, the original Statue of Liberty was closed to the public. At present, it is available to everyone, but subject to a thorough search, similar to that carried out in international airports. Consequently, the symbol of the United States is one of the safest objects for tourists in the world.

"Freedom Enlightening the World" has been meeting all travelers who have arrived in New York Bay for more than a hundred years, and is one of the world's most famous monuments, a symbol of the United States.

History of the Statue of Liberty

Shortly after the end of the American Civil War, the French scholar and writer Edouard de Laboulay, who admired the ideas of the American state system, came up with the idea of creating a monument that personified the acquisition of US independence.

The idea was picked up by another Frenchman Frederic Bartholdi (architect of the Statue of Liberty), who at that time was working on the creation of a female sculpture with a torch in his hand. Already in 1870, the French sculptor made the first sketches of the monument, with which he went to the USA for approval of the project. The project is approved by the American side (including Ulysses Grant, who was then President of the United States), and representatives of the two powers (France and the United States) decide to start building a monument called "Liberty Enlightening the World."

With the mutual consent of the parties, it is decided that the monument will be a gift to the United States from France for the centenary of the Declaration of Independence of the United States - July 4, 1876. By agreement between the countries, the sculpture itself was to be designed by the French side, and the American side would work on the creation of the pedestal.

However, the construction of the monument dragged on for a long 10 years ...

Hand with a torch

After the start of work on the project, it becomes clear that there is a catastrophic lack of money to create a monument. On both sides of the ocean, the initiators of the project begin to raise funds for the construction, various charitable events are organized.

In August 1876, Bartholdi was forced to bring part of the sculpture (a hand with a torch) to the United States, where the fragment was installed at the Centenary Exhibition in Philadelphia, and then in Madison Square. Visitors are charged a fee to visit the torch hand, but the proceeds are still not enough to complete the construction.

The US Congress refuses to allocate funds for the construction of the monument, citing the plight of American finances and the untimeliness of the erection of an "allegorical" monument, while the country needs monuments to the heroes of the Civil War.

A young journalist, Joseph Pulitzer, comes to the rescue by launching a large-scale fundraising campaign for the monument in the press. The journalist calls on Americans to unite, fiercely criticizes the indifferent, and promises to write about everyone who has made at least a small donation. The campaign is a success and after a few months the required amount was collected.

The fragment returns to France, where Bartholdi begins to work hard on the project: by 1878, the head of the sculpture had already been completed by the sculptor, and in 1879, Gustave Eiffel was involved in the creation of the monument. It was this talented engineer who designed the steel frame of the statue and the spiral staircases leading up to the crown. Bartholdi and his assistants made 350 skin parts that were supposed to be put on the frame. The parts were made of copper, which is easy to cut and bend, which made it possible to “fit” the parts right during the assembly process.

The figure of Liberty was hung by the French in 1884, after which the structure was dismantled, and all the details of the sculpture were delivered by ship in June 1885 to the United States.
The American side also did not waste time: the statue's pedestal, designed by Richard Hunt, began to be erected in 1883. With the consent of Congress and taking into account the wishes of Bartholdi, Fort Wood, which had the shape of an eleven-pointed star, and was located on Bedloe Island in the harbor, was chosen as the site for the installation of the statue.

In April 1986, the pedestal was completed, and the assembly of the complete structure of the monument began. Finally, on October 26, 1886, the grand opening of the Statue of Liberty took place: President Cleveland, after holding the parade, went to Bedloe Island, where, under general rejoicing, he tore off the French flag that covered the statue and proclaimed that “Liberty itself chose this place as its home!”

general description

Three kilometers from busy Manhattan, in the bay, the majestic Statue of Liberty welcomes all guests, travelers and its citizens.

The monumental monument, 93 meters high, consists of the female figure itself (46 meters) and a concrete pedestal (47 meters). The female figure holds a torch in her right hand, and in her left she holds a tablet, on which the date of the United States Independence Day is carved in Latin letters.

At the foot of the monument lies a broken chain, representing the cast off fetters of slavery and the victory of democracy. There are windows in the crown, symbolizing the rays of the sun and precious stones of the earth. To get to the windows you need to overcome 354 steps, and if you climb just to the top of the pedestal - 194 steps. There is an elevator inside the pedestal.

The total weight is over 200 tons (together with a cement base, copper coating and a steel frame), and the length of the statue of liberty is 93 meters (including the pedestal).

At the bottom of the pedestal there is a bronze plate with poems by Emma Lazarus, which appeared here in 1903. The words of the poetess were written after a wave of pogroms that swept Europe in the late 1880s, after which crowds of immigrants rushed to the shores of America in the hope of finding a new homeland. The poems convey the idea of the Statue of Liberty - the readiness to take under its roof all the outcasts and the destitute, and the promise to give them freedom and equality on this shore.

The very visit to the island of Liberty and the Statue is free, but you can only get to it by water - on ferries and boats, where you have to pay a certain amount for the trip. You can get to the Statue itself without hindrance, but the number of visitors is strictly fixed. If you do not book a ticket in advance, the visit will be limited to a walk around the pedestal and climbing observation deck, where you can see the Statue from the inside through a special glass ceiling.

The Statue of Liberty is open to the public all year round, but it is better to make an excursion in the warm season - in winter, a boat trip will bring very dubious extreme pleasures due to cold northern winds characteristic of this time of year.

Interesting Facts

The history of the Statue of Liberty is inseparable from the history of the United States itself, so it is accompanied by a lot of amazing and entertaining facts:

The personification of the friendship of two peoples: French and American, which formed the basis for the creation of the monument, was safely forgotten over time. Now the Statue of Liberty is represented in the world exclusively as main character United States, personifying the victory of democracy and the independence of the country.
The seven rays emanating from the crown are the seven seas and continents of light, from which travelers sail to America, hoping to find shelter and a new homeland. It is a symbol of hope for all the persecuted, the destitute, a harbor for sailors and refugees from all over the world.
Initially, Bartholdi worked on the creation of a female figure with a torch in her hand to install it at the entrance to the Suez Canal - this project was never realized, but served as a prototype for another monument. The Statue of Liberty combines two images - the goddess of freedom of ancient Rome, Libertas, and the symbol of Colombia.
The characteristic green color of the Statue is given by the sheathing sheets of the structure, made of copper. Initially, projects were proposed to clean the surface, but then they decided not to touch the skin that protects the statue from further destructive corrosion.
Initially, the Statue of Liberty was supposed to be used as a lighthouse, but the lamps built into the structure did not differ in power. Having found no practical use for the Statue, the government's lighthouse division handed over the monument to the United States War Department in 1901. Already in 1933, the monument was transferred to the US National Park Service.
Bedloe Island, previously considered a slum area, significantly changed status with the establishment of a monument, and in 1956 was renamed Liberty Island, and 10 years later it was included in the National Register historical sites U.S.A.
By the 100th anniversary of the creation of the monument, a thorough reconstruction of the monument was carried out (sea spray and cold winds thoroughly spoiled appearance Statues), initiated by President Reagan. This time, funds for reconstruction among American citizens were collected in the shortest possible time, and more than covered the two million dollars spent on repairs.
Access for visitors since the establishment of the Statue was closed several times: for the period from 1982 to 1986 (reconstruction), from September 2001 until the end of 2004 (due to the threat of terrorist attacks), and also in October 2013 (during the period of suspension of the government ).
After the successful Norman operation, the lights of the beacon on the statue broadcast the news of victory to the whole world in Morse code.

UNESCO has listed world heritage American statue in 1984, describing it as a symbol of peace, glorifying the power of the human spirit, the abolition of slavery, the victory of democracy and human rights.

The erected Statue of Liberty became at the beginning of the twentieth century the personification of independence, prosperity, free life for many travelers who crossed the Atlantic in search of a better life.

Most popular

The Statue of Liberty is located on Liberty Island. Liberty Island ), about 3 km southwest of the southern tip of Manhattan, in New Jersey. Before the city, the island was called "Bedloe's Island" (eng. Bedloe's Island ), although the people called it the "Island of Freedom" since the beginning of the 20th century.

Statue of Liberty (view from the pedestal)

The goddess of freedom holds a torch in her right hand and a tablet in her left. The inscription on the tablet reads "eng. JULY IV MDCCLXXVI” (written in Roman numerals the date “July 4, 1776”), this date is the day the United States Declaration of Independence was adopted. With one foot, "Freedom" stands on broken chains.

Visitors walk 356 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 concrete base is 27 thousand tons. The thickness of the copper coating of the statue is 2.57 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

Plate "New Colossus"

Inside the statue's crown

Tokyo

The Statue of Liberty is installed in Tokyo on the island of Odaiba.

Las Vegas

Uzhhorod

The smallest statue of Liberty in the world, the author of which is the sculptor Mikhail Kolodko and the architect Alexander Bezik, is located in the city of Uzhgorod on the parapet Footbridge. The 30-cm sculpture, created on the initiative of the head of the tourism department of the Uzhgorod National University Fyodor Shandor, was cast in bronze in Budapest, weighs 4 kg and is a real lighthouse on the non-navigable Uzh River, where the Uzhgorod regatta is held annually. The sculptural woman symbolizes the love of Transcarpathians for everything unique and original.

Dnepropetrovsk

May 18, 2012 in Dnepropetrovsk, in the cafe "Melrose" on Geroev Ave, the statue of Liberty was installed, the height of the sculpture is 2.65 m, the height of the pedestal is 1.35 m, the sculptor is Semenova S.S.

Moscow

Monument to the Soviet Constitution(Obelisk and Statue of Liberty) on Soviet (Tverskaya) Square in Moscow. 1918-1919 (not preserved).

In the autumn of 1918, a 26-meter triangular obelisk appeared on Sovetskaya Square in honor of the Soviet constitution. The monument was supplemented in June 1919 with the Statue of Liberty by Nikolai Andreev. The monument fell in love with Muscovites.

The monument was not destined to stand for long. By the end of the 1930s, it needed restoration, as it was made hastily, from short-lived, low-quality materials: the obelisk was made of brick and plastered “under granite”, and the statue was cast from concrete. But the matter did not come to restoration: shortly before the Great Patriotic War, on April 22, 1941, the dilapidated monument was destroyed. The head of the Statue of Liberty is now kept in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Statue of Liberty in popular culture

In video games

The video game Grand Theft Auto IV features a parody of the statue. The parody statue is called the Statue of Happiness. On the upper floors there is a door through which you can enter and then climb a long staircase. There is a beating heart suspended on chains (the heart of the city). If you shoot him, he will bleed. Instead of a torch, the statue has a cup of coffee
In the Civilization series of games, the Statue of Liberty is one of the wonders of the world.
In the Red Alert series of video games, the Statue of Liberty is repeatedly destroyed. Its destruction is part of the game and cutscenes.
Also, the Statue of Liberty can be seen in the video games of the Deus Ex series. In the first part, the statue was destroyed by the conspirators before the start of the game, and the first level of the game takes place on the territory of the Island of Freedom, in the second part it is restored in the form of a hologram by Helios-JCDENTON.
In the Kasumi - Stolen Memory add-on for the video game Mass Effect 2, the head of the Statue of Liberty, which was destroyed by terrorists in 2096, can be found in Donovan Hawk's underground vault.
In the computer game Rise Of Nations: Thrones and Patriots, the Statue of Liberty is one of the wonders of the world.
In the video game World in Conflict, there is a mission in which the Statue of Liberty must be recaptured or a bomb will be dropped on it.
In the computer game Crysis 2, the Statue of Liberty is destroyed by an alien attack. Its separate fragments - the right hand with a torch and the head are the scenery of some cards.
In the video game Twisted metal 2 on the New York map, the Statue of Liberty can be shot down, causing it to crumble, leaving a woman in a bikini in its place.
In the game Prototype 2, from some skyscrapers in the Yellow Zone, you can see the island in the fog along with the statue. However, the character cannot get to the island, because the character jumps out of the water towards the mainland or big island, if it falls into the water, and there are no objects closest to the island.

To the cinema

"Ghostbusters 2" - in the film, the main characters revive the Statue of Liberty and use it in the fight against Evil.
In Alfred Hitchcock's "Saboteur" main character Barry Kane, in the hand of a statue holding a torch, tries to hold onto the sleeve of the Nazi spy Fry. In reality, the actor Norman Lloyd was filmed in the studio, lying on a special black saddle on a black floor, and the camera moved 12 meters away from him. During editing, a fragment filmed on the Statue of Liberty was superimposed on a black background, and it turned out that the actor was falling down.
"National Treasure: Book of Secrets" - on the Parisian statue of liberty is one of the keys that helps the heroes of the film find treasures.
In the science fiction film "Monstro", the heroes, running out into the streets to find out what is happening, see the head of the Statue of Liberty rolling through the streets of Manhattan. And on the promotional poster for the film, the statue itself is depicted without a head. Only the torch lonely sticks out over the wreckage.
"X-Men" - Magneto installs his miracle machine on the torch of the Statue of Liberty to turn all people into mutants.
In the film The Day After Tomorrow by Roland Emmerich, the statue is first covered by a tsunami, and then a sharp cold snap leads to icing of the statue and the whole of New York.
A giant wave also covers the Statue of Liberty in the movie "Collision with the Abyss". Further, the severed head of the statue can be seen floating underwater between the skyscrapers of New York.
In the film Planet of the Apes (1968), the protagonist George Taylor, having discovered the half-buried Statue of Liberty on the ocean shore, realizes with despair that he is on planet Earth.
In the movie "People in Black 2" on the Statue of Liberty is a memory erasure device designed for the entire territory of New York.
In the movie "Quick Changes" when the characters get lost in one of the districts of New York, the main character desperately utters the phrase: "Well, at least see something familiar." In this case, the camera rises above tall buildings and a panorama of the bay is shown, with the Statue of Liberty in the foreground.
In the cartoon "Union of Beasts", released in 2010, the Statue of Liberty is shown. Monkeys climb on her crown.
In the film Independence Day by Roland Emmerich, the Statue of Liberty is shown destroyed after the destruction of New York. Before that, a screensaver appears, where it says: July 3rd.
The disaster television movie Disaster Day 2 shows how the Statue of Liberty is first covered by a tsunami, then you can see how the Statue is blown away by a hurricane.
The movie "Artificial Mind" shows what the Statue of Liberty looks like - in a dilapidated and flooded New York, only the torch of the statue sticks out above the surface.
A copy of the Statue of Liberty in Tokyo can be seen in the anime Tokyo Magnitude 8.0: they showed how birds take off next to the statue right before the earthquake.
In the documentary series "Life after people" you can see how the Statue will look like 300 years after the disappearance of people. Another documentary on the same subject - "Earth: life without people" ("Aftermath: Population Zero") - also shows the Statue of Liberty.
Disaster movie

Hello readers of our portal! With this next article, we will try to return to the description of the most interesting and juicy places on our planet after a long break. The choice of an object for the next review did not stand for a long time - the disassembled list of 8 wonders of the world stood for too long without its candidate. Today in the review - the Statue of Liberty in the USA. The symbol in the monument to democracy and freedom of all the United States of America.

Statue of Liberty (on English language Statue of Liberty), she is also "Liberty Enlightening the World" or "Lady Liberty" - a symbol of freedom and democracy in the United States, a giant colossus statue made in the neoclassical style. The statue is located on Liberty Island, located 3 kilometers southwest of Manhattan Island. The special value of the statue was also recognized by the world community - in 1984 it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. We could not pass by such an object of human heritage.

Description of the statue

The giant Statue of Liberty stands on a pedestal. She holds a torch in her right hand and a tablet in her left. The inscription on the tablet shows the date of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence of the United States (Roman numerals - JULY IV MDCCLXXVI, July 4, 1776 in our manner). One naga steps on broken chains.

Tablet of the Statue of Liberty

To climb to the top of the statue in her crown, you need to go through 356 steps. You can shorten this excursion by climbing only to the pedestal - 192 steps. In addition to the spiral staircase inside the structure, the visitor can also use the elevator.

View inside

On the head of the statue is a crown. Its 25 windows symbolize "earthly gems and heavenly rays that illuminate the world" - which sources are not named, but it sounds at least funny. But with the rays of the crown, everything is already simpler - there are 7 of them, and they, in turn, symbolize the seven seas and continents. It is worth noting that in the Western world it is customary to consider exactly 7 continents. They came up with this symbolism before or after the creation of the statue is not called, but the general idea for the crown is a bit strange.

The total height of the statue is 93 meters, the net height of the statue without the pedestal is 46 meters. The manufacturing process used 31 tons of copper, 125 tons of steel and 27,000 tons of pedestal concrete.

Thin sheets of copper 2.57 mm thick were minted in wooden moulds. They were used to create the very figure of the statue. To fasten the entire structure inside the statue, a steel frame is provided, extending into concrete.

Now from the high point statue, accessible to tourists - the crown, offers a magnificent view of New York Harbor. The pedestal houses a museum of history, and Liberty Island itself (Liberty Island, or until 1956 Bedloe Island) is also recognized as a national monument.

View from the crown

Statue of Liberty in harsh numbers

Parts of the sculpture
Height from ground to top of torch
statue height
Hand length
Index finger length
Head from crown to chin
Face Width
Eye length
Nose length
Right arm length
Right arm thickness
Waist thickness
Mouth width
Plate height
Plate Width
Plate thickness
Height from ground to top of pedestal

A little history of the statue: the beginning

The history of the Statue of Liberty begins with known fact- The statue is a gift from France to the United States in honor of the centenary of American independence. But how everything went from the emergence of the idea to the state of modern days - read below.

The idea of creating a statue belongs to the French thinker, writer and politician Edouard Rene Lefevre. Being the president of the anti-slavery society in France, he was very impressed with the victory in civil war fighters against the slave system in the USA. According to the sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, Lefebvre had this idea in 1865.

The existing policy of Napoleon III did not allow to proceed with such a project. Therefore, progress resumed only in the late 1860s. The sculptor Bartholdi had ideas to create a majestic colossus before. Initially, the project was proposed for Egypt, but the budgets did not pull the transportation and installation of the statue. The 100th Anniversary of Independence in the United States was another great opportunity to create a high-level project.

The project has taken off. According to the agreement, France was to create the sculpture itself, and the United States - the pedestal. Bartholdi acted as a sculptor. But to create such a massive structure, the help of a great engineer was required - Gustave Eiffel, the future creator of the legendary Eiffel Tower, was invited to take his place.

From first impressions to opening

The work in Bartholdi's workshop was in full swing. Already in May 1876, at the World Exhibition in Philadelphia, the right hand of the future statue with a torch was shown. For a visit to this impressive structure, they took 50 cents (not bad money at that time). The hand itself made a huge impression on the visitors of the exhibition. In order not to lead the hand back to France after the exhibition, it was placed in New York's Madison Square Garden.

At the World Exhibition of 1876

But the process of creating the statue was not without problems - there was not enough money. To solve this problem, charitable donations, entertainment events, lotteries, theatrical performances, exhibitions, auctions, boxing fights were held.

Joseph Pulitzer, publisher of the World newspaper, played a special role in raising funds. A man who has made a career from a newspaper peddler, a journalist of small notes to the owner of a publishing house - should he not understand the current thoughts of the people. Campaigns to raise funds for a new material embodiment of the American idea and dream did not last long - after 5 months of work, the funds were collected. The contribution of this man is difficult to overestimate, the Pulitzer Prize is still one of the most prestigious awards among journalists.

Workshop work

While the statue was being made, by an act of Congress in 1877, General William Sherman approved the site of the future statue - Bedloe Island. The process of choosing a place was not without the recommendations of the sculptor. The place was not chosen by chance - at the mouth of the Hudson, near Ellis Island, the place where all newly arrived future US citizens arrived, the place where their initial registration was made.

The construction of the pedestal began on August 5, 1885 - on this day the first stone was laid here. The project architect is Richard Morris. Less than a year later - April 22, 1886 - the pedestal was already finished. Additionally, 2 lintels of steel beams were built into the masonry, which are connected by anchor beams extending upwards as part of the steel frame of the statue. Thus, the pedestal and the statue are one whole, an integral massive strong construction.

The Statue of Liberty was completed back in 1884, and on June 17, 1885, it was delivered to New York Harbor. For transportation, it was previously disassembled into 350 parts and packed in 214 boxes. Note that the assembly process itself took another 4 months. Here he is a real designer for great people.

The grand opening of the statue took place on October 28, 1886. The opening was delayed from the idea for 10 years. US President Grover Cleveland also took part in this ceremony, who here uttered the phrase that went down in history:

“We will always remember that Freedom has chosen this place as its home, and oblivion will never cover its altar”

After opening

Previously, Fort Wood was built at the location of the statue (it was built for the war of 1812, of course, not with Napoleon), which has the shape of a five-pointed star. In the center of it, on a pedestal, a statue was installed. On October 15, 1924, Fort Wood and the statue were declared a national monument. And later, the entire island fell under the square of the national monument.

Slums of early Fort Wood

Even later, the neighboring Ellis Island was also included here, on which at first the immigration center was located, where all newcomers to the country were registered.

View from the ship upon arrival in New York

In 1982, President Ronald Reagan is going to restore a slightly tired monument. The event is raising $87 million. Immediately at the beginning of the restoration in 1984, the statue is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. On July 5, 1986, it again became open to visitors.

Statue Restoration

Back in 1916, the stairs to the torch were closed for safety reasons. During the restoration of 1986, the torch was replaced with a new one, covered with 24 carat gold. The old torch was placed at the pedestal. But still, the access to the crown remains the maximum accessible point for the visitor.

old torch

Everyone remembers September 11, 2001 - the day the terrorists attacked the World shopping center. The statue and the island were immediately closed to visitors, it was impossible to risk visitors - after all, this is a symbol of all America. Since then, access to the statue has become more difficult. It was possible to get to the island from the end of 2001, to the pedestal only from August 4, 2004. On July 4, 2009, President Barack Obama opened access to the statue, but with restrictions on the number of visitors per day.

The next installation of new elevators and stairs took place from October 29, 2011 to October 28, 2012. Currently, full access is resumed up to the crown.

Left: The hand and torch of the Statue of Liberty being made in a Paris studio, 1876. Right: The head of the Statue of Liberty being made in a Paris studio, 1880.

The Statue of Liberty was presented to the United States by the government of France in honor of the centenary of the American Declaration of Independence. The giant figure was called "Liberty Illuminating the World" and was created for 10 years in the art studio of the sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. Gustave Eiffel, creator eiffel tower, developed for it the design of the internal steel frame. It was planned to present this gift on July 4, 1876, but due to lack of funds, which were to be replenished by voluntary donations, the celebration had to be postponed.

Practical Americans did not understand what kind of romantic utopias they had to part with their labor income for.

Bartholdi was forced to send to the states a fragment of a statue 15 meters high - the right hand and a torch, which he installed in Philadelphia at the exhibition of the century. For climbing into the torch itself, they took 50 cents (decent money in those days). Then the hand with the torch was transported to New York and installed in Madison Square Garden. Yet the money was clearly not enough.

And then a young journalist, editor and publisher of the World newspaper, Joseph Pulitzer, got down to business. At 18, he arrived in New York penniless from Hungary and began his career as a paperboy. Then he began to write police chronicles, small notes and quickly became the owner of the dying New York World newspaper. He instantly restructured her work, appealing to thousands of new emigrants, the same. like himself, perfectly understanding their needs and aspirations. So Pulitzer abruptly joined the campaign to raise money.

“This statue is not a gift from the millionaires of France to the millionaires of America,” he wrote angrily, “it is a gift from the French to all Americans. Take this as a personal call to you!”

Within 5 months, the required amount was collected. This action brought fame to Pulitzer and allowed him to triple the circulation of the newspaper. And today, the Pulitzer Prize is the most prestigious for journalists.

Finally, on October 28, 1886, US President Grover Cleveland received the Statue of Liberty on Bedloe Island, renamed Liberty Island in 1956 in honor of the famous statue, to thunderous fanfare.

Initially, an agreement was reached between the governments of the two countries, according to which the French side was responsible for the construction and transportation of the statue, while America prepared a place for it and erected an appropriate pedestal. Both the French and the Americans agreed that a small island at the entrance to New York Harbor would be best suited for their purposes. Here, at one time, the foundation for Fort Wood was already arranged in the form of a ten-pointed star. It could well serve as a foundation for a grandiose pedestal, the first stone of which was laid in 1884.

The statue itself, 47 m high, Bartholdi was going to sheathe with copper sheets no more than 2.4 mm thick. Thin copper had to be minted in a special wooden mold. As a result, Bartholdi and his henchmen made 350 separate skin parts, which in July 1884 were sent by ship to the United States. On Bedloe Island, they were put together like a huge construction kit and put on a steel frame made by Eiffel.

The frame consists of four monumental steel pillars, penetrating the statue to its full height. These supports are attached to the pedestal with huge steel bolts. Distributed on the main supports is the lace of a steel frame, which Bartholdi sheathed with hundreds of details of his designer. To give the statue sufficient strength and flexibility, each element of the copper sheathing was provided with its own independent beam. Bartholdi hoped in advance that the material of the casing would make it easier for him to assemble the statue, because thin sheet copper is easily bent and cut. This allowed for the final adjustment of parts directly on the statue, during the assembly process. One way or another, the Statue of Liberty is without a doubt an example of the skill of a talented French engineer.

In the ensemble with a plinth, made in the classical style by the architect Richard M. Hunt, the height of the statue from the base to the top of the golden flames is 95 m. The seven rays on its crown symbolize the seven seas. For many travelers who crossed the Atlantic to get to America, the Statue of Liberty was a symbol of freedom, independence and prosperity.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary in 1986, the Statue of Liberty underwent a "facelift". The salty sea air corroded its structure so much that a serious restoration was required. Voluntary contributions from citizens across America more than covered the $2 million required for this work. This statue means a lot to the citizens of America - and not only to them.

An invitation to hope

In a figurative sense, the Statue of Liberty was the first sign of a new world for the many millions of immigrants who have come to America over the past two centuries.

The famous words on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty belong to the New York poet Emma Lazarus, which were written after sweeping across Russia in the 1880s. waves of pogroms that forced many Jews across the Atlantic.

Since then, her lines have acquired a universal sound, serving as a beacon of hope for all the destitute and persecuted: And give me from the depths of the bottomless Your outcasts, your downtrodden people, Send me outcasts, the homeless, I will light a golden candle for them at the door!

Tourists

Get to Liberty Island (Liberty Island) you can use the ferry departing from the pier of Betteri Park (Battery park). Entering the park, you will see a long organized line, as once in the Mausoleum, these are those who want to visit the island with the statue, which you might want to join.

Visiting the crown is allowed again, but the number of places is limited, so you need to book tickets in advance. Those who have not done this will have to walk around the area around the statue and climb to the observation deck on the 16th floor; a special glass ceiling allows you to see the impressive "insides" of the statue. A visit to the island by ferry is usually combined with a visit neighboring island Ellis (Ellis Island). Ferries (Tel: 201-604-2800, 877-523-9849; www.statuecruises.com; adult/child $13/5; every 30 minutes 9am-5pm, longer in summer) depart from battery park (Battery Park). The nearest tube stations are South Ferry and Bowling Green. Booking ferry tickets in advance (corona visit - additional $3), you will visit both attractions.

An excursion to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty is best done in the warm season and during daylight hours.

Of course, in winter there are much fewer people, so. if you are not afraid of the icy piercing wind that reaches the skin through the warmest down coats and gloves, then it is worth a try. Traveling by boat is wonderful, but being outdoors in cold weather is quite extreme in its feelings. There is an old immigration center on Ellis Island, where all newcomers to the country entered and registered, now there is a museum.

Data

Title: Officially translated from French, its name is "Liberty that illuminates the world." She is also known as the Statue of Liberty, Lady Liberty or Miss Liberty.
Design: The author of the statue is the French sculptor Frederic Bartholdi. Putting Eiffel in charge of engineering work, he also created its steel inner frame. The total weight of the statue is 254 tons.
Dimensions: The statue itself has a height of 46.5 m and stands on a 47-meter pedestal, to the top of which a staircase of 194 steps leads, and 354 steps must be climbed to the crown of the statue.
UNESCO World Heritage List: The Statue of Liberty was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1984.

Ellis Island

Served from 1892 to 1954 as a staging post for over 12 million immigrants hoping to start new life in America, Ellis Island is modest and sometimes even miserable, but on the other hand, it symbolizes the fulfillment of desires. Here in the island hospital, more than three thousand people died, many were denied the right to enter. The immigration station on Ellis Island is the second stop for ferries going to the Statue of Liberty. The beautiful main building became the Museum of Immigration (Immigration museum; Tel: 212-363-3200; www.ellisisland.org; New York Harbor (New York Harbor); audio guide $8; 9.30-17.00), where the most interesting exhibitions and film screenings are held about the life of immigrants, about how the influx of population has changed the United States.