The Statue of Liberty, or “Liberty Enlightening the World,” is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor. A gift from the people of France to the United States, it has become a universal symbol of freedom and democracy. Its history is a fascinating story of international friendship, engineering innovation, and the evolving meaning of liberty.
The Concept and Creation
The idea for the statue was first proposed in 1865 by French political intellectual and abolitionist Édouard de Laboulaye. His goal was to commemorate the long-standing alliance between France and the United States, celebrate the centennial of American independence, and honor the abolition of slavery following the American Civil War. Laboulaye envisioned a monumental gift that would “glorify liberty” and inspire democratic ideals in France.
French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi embraced the idea and began designing the statue in 1870. His design was a robed female figure representing Libertas, the Roman goddess of liberty. She holds a torch in her raised right hand, symbolizing enlightenment, and a tablet in her left, inscribed with the date of the Declaration of Independence in Roman numerals (JULY IV MDCCLXXVI). At her feet, a broken shackle and chain lie, a subtle but powerful reference to the end of oppression and slavery.
The project was a joint effort: France would fund and build the statue, while the American people would be responsible for constructing the pedestal. Fundraising efforts in both countries were a monumental undertaking, involving public fees, lotteries, and art exhibitions. In the U.S., a significant push for donations was led by newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer, who used his paper, The World, to rally public support, raising over $100,000 from more than 120,000 people—many of them small-dollar donors.
The Colours of the Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty originated as a sign of friendship between longtime allies France and the United States, and has become one of the most recognizable monuments in the world. Since 1886, Lady Liberty has proudly watched over New York Harbor in all her green glory — but this iconic color isn’t the statue’s original hue.
Copper to pink
When the monument was unveiled in Paris on July 4, 1884, it looked markedly different. Made with 31 tons of copper, it was roughly the same color as a penny. But the Statue of Liberty didn’t turn from brown to green overnight — the change took a few decades and went through an array of colors, the first of which was pink.
Pink to dark brown
The statue’s color changed rapidly after it arrived in the harbor due to chemical reactions caused by exposure to the elements. The copper began to oxidize quickly, and the first stage of weathering caused the statue to form a surface layer of cuprite, a pinkish-red mineral that gave Lady Liberty a rosy hue. The cuprite continued to oxidize, this time turning into a black mineral called tenorite, causing the statue to appear a much darker brown than it had been a few years prior.
Bluish green
By the 1920s, the monument arrived at its current bluish-green shade thanks to the minerals brochantite, antlerite, and atacamite. This greenish patina is commonly found on copper — just look at the old, weathered penny in your pocket. But not everyone was a fan of the Statue of Liberty’s new look.
Painting plan kiboshed
In 1906, Congress even approved a $62,000 painting budget (around $2 million today) to fix the monument as the patina became very noticeable. Due to public outrage, the statue was left alone, in the color that nature intended it to be.
