Statue of Liberty, New York, United States of America

The Statue of Liberty, is a colossal neoclassical sculpture, on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, in New York City, in the United States. The copper statue, a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States, was designed by French sculptor, Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, and its metal framework, was built by Gustave Eiffel. The statue was dedicated on, October 28, 1886.

The statue is a figure of Libertas, a robed Roman liberty goddess. She holds a torch above her head, with her right hand, and in her left hand, carries a tabula ansata inscribed, July 4, 1776 in Roman numerals, the date of the U. S. Declaration of Independence. A broken shackle and chain lie at her feet, as she walks forward, commemorating, the recent national abolition of slavery. After its dedication, the statue became an icon of freedom, and of the United States, seen as a symbol of welcome, to immigrants arriving by sea.

Bartholdi, was inspired by a French law professor and politician, Édouard René de Laboulaye, who is said to have commented, in 1865 that, any monument raised to United States independence, would properly be a joint project, of the French and American peoples. The Franco-Prussian War, delayed progress until 1875, when Laboulaye proposed that, the French finance the statue, and the United States provide the site, and build the pedestal. Bartholdi, completed the head and the torch-bearing arm, before the statue was fully designed, and these pieces were exhibited for publicity, at international expositions.

The torch-bearing arm, was displayed at the Centennial Exposition, in Philadelphia in 1876, and in Madison Square Park, in Manhattan, from 1876 to 1882. Fundraising proved difficult, especially for the Americans, and by 1885, work on the pedestal was threatened, by lack of funds. Publisher Joseph Pulitzer, of the New York World, started a drive for donations, to finish the project, and attracted more than 120,000 contributors, most of whom gave less than a dollar (equivalent to $30 in 2021). The statue was built in France, shipped overseas in crates, and assembled on the completed pedestal, on what was then called Bedloe's Island. The statue's completion, was marked by New York's first ticker-tape parade, and a dedication ceremony, presided over by, President Grover Cleveland.

The statue was administered by, the United States Lighthouse Board, until 1901, and then by the Department of War; since 1933 it has been maintained by the National Park Service, as part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument, and is a major tourist attraction. Public access to the balcony around the torch, has been barred since 1916.