The Relevance Of The Statue Of Liberty
When you are coming to the city of New York for the first time, it would be an oversight not to place the Statue of Liberty at the top of your list of points of interest and landmarks to view. It was originally conceptualized around the 1870s as a way of celebrating the 100 years of the American Declaration of Independence by the United States history writer and French politician, Edouard Rene. But, now it is much more than just a historical landmark, representing the ideals that the US is based upon and the independence of its people.
The Statue of Liberty was commissioned in 1876 as a joint undertaking amongst the Americans as well as the French. Surprisingly, the building of the statue counted entirely on publicly given finances, as opposed to being financed by the federal government. Everything started out with a sculpture by the architect, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, who, a few say, made use of the similarity of his mom, Charlotte Bartholdi, to make the face. Bartholdi, would also enlist the help of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who would afterwards go on to design the classic Eiffel Tower, to design the iron structure that will tackle structural issues.
Even though the French were busy with constructing the actual Statue of Liberty National Monument, the Americans were working hard with the foundation. The building was tasked to American architect, Richard Morris Hunt, who developed the base in the form of an 11-pointed star and made it from granite. Even though the statue itself already stood at 111 feet, the base was over 194 feet tall, bringing the complete assembly to 305 feet. The foundation was done by April of 1886.
Needless to say, the French still had to transport the statue to the United States. Although it had been done by July of 1884, it needed to be taken apart into 350 specific pieces that were kept in 214 crates. It came in New York Harbor just within a year right after the statue's completion. It then took another 4 months to assemble the statue for a grand opening on October 26, 1886.
The Statue of Liberty National Monument holds importance beyond commemorating the American Declaration of Independence. It has become linked with immigration during the time as it was the very first sight that will great immigrants as they arrived from boats that will eventually go to Ellis Island. The famous torch also represents the propagation of democracy along with its virtues. The genuine torch is actually on showcase in one of several exhibits within the statue's bottom, having been replaced throughout a restoration span that held up from 1984 to 1986 coming from the efforts of Ronald Reagan.