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Description of the Great Statue in New York Harbor, The Gift of the French People to the American People, The unveiling of Bartholdi's real statue of. “Liberty Iunlightening: the World,” af, Bodloe's Island in New York harbor, October 28,makes the following description of the magnificent gift of the French. people ‘to the American people both timely and interesting. This new wonder of the world, now placed in position on its podesta, on Bedloe's Island, the site, selected in New York, harbor ‘by General William T. Sharman, as authorized under the acthal Congress, February, 1877, deserves‘more than a passing «comment, be ing the largest statue of the ancient,or mod ern world. Some idud of its magnitude may be obtained from the following facts: Looming up 300 feet, above the walter, the hight of the stature is 151 feet, 3 inches, that of the pedestal,$1 foot, and the founda tion 52 foot, 10 inches. . The Statue is constructed of copper sheets $16'of an inch thick. The forefinger meas ures 8 feet in length and 4 feet in circum ference at the second joint. The nail meas ures 14 inches in length ‘by 10 in ‘breadth. The head is 14 fest high. “ The sun is 28 inches in width. The nose is 5 fest 9 inches long. “The ‘total weight of this stipendous figure is 440,000 pounds, of which 176,000 pounds are copper, the remainder being wrought iron. About ee orsons can find standing room within the head. A six-foot main stand ing on the level of the lips only reaches the eyebrow. Fifteen people might sit around: the flame of the torch, which elevation is reached by aypiral staircase within the out stretched arm. T he manner of properly lighting the Statue by means of electricity has been care fully studied: diing?the past three years, and some of the most eminent electriciaig in the country have been consulted. The system adopted: embraces :a powerful electric light from, the torch, the illumination of the Statue itself, and small clusters of lights,in the diadem. The means for profiling the necessary plant was votes by Congress. ‘While discussing our goddess, let us turn for a moment to heathen “‘aythology, three centures before the birth of Christ. The ‘elder Pliny informs us, that at the entrance of the Port of the City of holos, there stood the most celebrated statue of antiquity, “The Colossus of Rhodes,”a statue of Helios, the Sun-God, made of bras., and 105 feet high, costing the sum of 301, talents, or about $375,000. After being ereted, it shood only 26 years, being thrown down by an earth quake 3 years before Christ,to remain on the spot where it fell 000 years, being finally sold to a speculator for old brass. After the tirevian. epoch: we. pass only modern times and find examples of Colossal, Art, yet,nothing that Gamipares ‘in megni iide with the “Bartholdi ‘Colossus of Lib erty : F . This. Colossus of the Colossi of ancient or w modern art represents an outlay of more than a million of francs'(8200,000), the indi ‘vidual:subscriptions of the artizans of France, and stands in its imposing majesty higher than the enormous towers of the great Brooklyn Bridge, or the staeple of Trinity Church—the loftiest church steeple in the City of New York. The total cost of statue, pedestal, and foundation is nearly one million dollars. Om A word here is apropos as fo fts artisti merit. The pose, stride and gesture, with: 103 Classic face, are pronounced: by art critigsias perfect: the drapery is both massive and ne, and in some parts,is delinte,and silky in effect,as if wrought with a fine chisal on the smallest scale, . The conception and execution of this great work of art are due to the efforts of the ami nent French sculptor Bartholdi, who has de voted eight years of his life and a part of his private fortune to the completion of a task so dobly and generously supported by the French people.
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Marion Enterprise
Marion, New York, US
Sat, Oct 23, 1886
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USA 15 Jan 2026
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