Statue of Liberty (New York, USA)

Statue of Liberty (New York, USA)

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of the most recognizable sculptures around the world, the settled symbol of New York and, perhaps, all America in general, the Statue of Liberty occupies the pedestal already more than hundred years. Hardly today there will be a person who does not have ideas of this sculpture and at least once not seeing it on pictures. Throughout a long time the statue got to itself popularity as an embodiment of democracy, freedom, the western way of life. The woman in a cloak and a crown squeezing a torch in the raised hand, and in another – a table, is famous worldwide.

However, having become kind of expression of all American, initially the statue appeared on other side of the ocean. Its real homeland – France, and the French sculptor Frederik Bartoldi was her author. Its creation was dated for century of the Declaration of Independence and for anniversary of a victory of the United States in war with Great Britain. The freedom-loving French, the worried numbers of revolutions, decided to give a gift to the American people.

Besides actually sculptor, still a number of people worked on a statue. Considering its big sizes, engineering decisions were required, and in the course of creation of a statue the well-known Gustave Eiffel who later glorified Paris by the well-known tower took part. During work on a statue repeatedly there were problems of financial character both at donators, and at host – was stipulated that the pedestal of the USA will be built at own expense. To solve these difficulties, various patrons, public figures and other public people, the commercial and state organizations established fund raisings for the aid to construction of a statue, played charitable lotteries and applied other actions.

As the statue was ready, it was delivered the ship from France to the New York bay. Having dismantled on a part, it was brought to several large a box. At the same time, the hand holding a torch was delivered first of all the rest, and some time was shown at first at an exhibition in Philadelphia, and later – in Madison Square Garden.

As the place for placement of a statue the island of Bedlow which found the informal name of the island of Svobody over time was chosen, and this name was later is formalized behind it. There, in three kilometers from the tip of Manhattan, the stone fort for soldiers constructed at the beginning of the XIX century was located. It was also chosen for placement of a pedestal and construction of a statue on it. Both the island, and a statue for different years were transferred from conducting one establishment to the jurisdiction of another, and at different times they were patronized by military, service of beacons, service of national parks.

LigeGid recommends to see also in the USA one more wonderful place: Grand Canyon.

Today the island of Svobody – one of the main attractions of New York, and people specially go here to see personally the well-known statue. It is possible to reach the island on the ferry which several times in day plies from pier on Manhattan. At the same time, it is possible to go as independently, having bought for this purpose the ticket, and as a part of excursion group. The guides conducting tours on the island and on a statue talk in many languages of the world, and each tourist will be able to appreciate everything and to learn many interesting facts from the history of the island and a statue.

The statue is mounted from a set of the fragments made of steel. Over them the copper covering is imposed – plates of copper were once cast in special wooden forms. At the same time, copper was bought at the time in the Russian Empire, and according to different data comes or from modern Bashkiria, or from Tagil.

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Both pedestal, and statue inside – hollow. At the same time in them there passes the ladder which it is possible to climb upward up to the crown. Everything in a statue is penetrated by symbolism. So, seven beams on a crown allegorically designate seven continents of the Globe and seven seas. In a crown there are windows from which the unforgettable panorama opens, and many visitors do not feel sorry for forces and time to rise to the very top.

Besides, in a statue it is possible to see the copper plate with the engraved poem by the American poetess Emma Lazarus. In it this statue as the new colossus which replaced well-known Rhodes is described and extolled. See this work imprinted on copper each visitor also can.

Whether it is necessary to say that in view of the well-known American enterprise around a statue, around pier for the ferry and also everywhere in New York a huge number of the souvenir products devoted to this historical monument is on sale? Baseball caps, undershirts, magnets, circles, brelka, pens and much, many other, imprinted the well-known statue, is offered to tourists just commercially. There are also special automatic machines in which it is possible to flatten out a cent coin to beat out on it a silhouette of a statue and a memorable inscription. To services of tourists field-glasses and other optics are offered in detail to consider separate fragments of a pedestal and the statue.

It should be noted as well that the reduced copies of the American Statue of Liberty in a set meet also in other cities, in various countries. At least several them in France – in the homeland of the author of this sculpture. One is in the American Las Vegas, there are statues in Tokyo, in the Ukrainian Dnipropetrovsk and in Uzhhorod.

Motives of a statue and in popular culture are widely applied – in cinema, in animated movies. Seldom what movie accident does not represent the crash of a statue – obviously, for the Western world it also would be original doomsday. The statue appears in such movies as X-Men, The planet of monkeys, Ghosts hunters and in many others. It is not less popular and in computer games.

Thanks to universal popularity and great popularity, the statue can be carried to modern wonders of the world. Daily thousands of tourists rise to its top and go down back, clicking for memory cameras. And the statue also thoughtfully watches everything afar, squeezing the lit torch in the raised hand.

LigeGid. Other unique statues: Motherland (Ukraine).

Author: «MirrorInfo» Dream Team

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