The Statue of Liberty reopens today. Here are 50
fascinating facts about the New York landmark.
1. The statue’s full name is Liberty Enlightening the
World.
2. It was a gift from France, given to America in 1886.
3. The head of the statue was displayed at the World's
Fair in Paris in 1878.
4. The robed female figure represents Libertas, the
Roman goddess of freedom.
5. She holds a torch and tablet upon which is
inscribed the date of American Declaration of
Independence (July 4, 1776).
6. From the ground to the top of the torch the statue
measures 93 metres, and weighs 204 metric tonnes.
7. Lady Liberty wears a size 879 shoe.
8. She has a 35-foot waistline
9. Visitors have to climb 354 stairs to reach the
statue’s crown.
10. There are 25 windows in the crown.
11. Approximately 4m people visit the statue each
year. In comparison, over 6m people visit The Eiffel
Tower, and 3.5m visit The London Eye.
12. The seven spikes on the crown represent the
seven oceans and the seven continents of the world,
indicating the universal concept of liberty.
13. The statue has an iron infrastructure and copper
exterior which has turned green due to oxidation.
Although it’s a sign of damage, the patina (green
coating) also acts as a form of protection from
further deterioration.
14. Edouard de Laboulaye provided the idea for the
statue, while Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi designed it.
15. Laboulaye proposed that a great monument
should be given as a gift from France to the United
States as a celebration of both the union’s victory in
the American Revolution, and the abolition of slavery.
16. Laboulaye also hoped the gift of the statue would
inspire French people to fight for their own
democracy in the face of a repressive monarchy
under Napolean III.
17. Gustave Eiffel, the man who designed the Eiffel
Tower was also behind the design for Liberty’s ‘spine’;
four iron columns supporting a metal framework that
holds the copper skin which is a mere 3/32ths of an
inch thick.
18. 300 different types of hammers were used to
create the copper structure.
19. The statue's face was said to be modelled on the
sculptor's mother, Charlotte.
20. The statue’s original torch was replaced in 1984
by a new copper torch covered in 24k gold leaf.
21. Although you cannot see Lady Liberty’s feet
clearly she is in fact standing among a broken
shackle and chains, with her right foot raised,
depicting her moving forward away from oppression
and slavery.
22. Despite the positive meaning of the statue -
American independence and the abolition of slavery -
it African Americans saw the statue as an ironic
image of America; professing to be a country of
freedom and justice for everyone regardless of race,
despite racism and discrimination continuing to
exist.
23. The Statue of Liberty became the symbol of
immigration during the second half of the 19th
century, as over 9m immigrants came to the United
States, with the statue often being the first thing they
saw when arriving by boat.
24. The statue’s most famous cinematic appearance
was in the 1968 film “Planet of the Apes” where it is
seen half buried in sand.
25. It is also destroyed in the films "Independence
Day" and "The Day After Tomorrow".
26. The cost of the statue was funded by
contributions from both the French and the
Americans. In 1885, a New York newspaper entitled
“World” announced that $102,000 had been raised
from donors, and that 80 per cent of this total had
been received in sums of less than one dollar.
27. Groups in Boston and Philadelphia offered to pay
the full cost of the construction of the statue, in
return for its relocation.
28. When the statue was first erected in 1886 it was
the tallest iron structure ever built.
29. In 1984, the statue was listed as a UNESCO World
Heritage Site.
30. In high winds of 50mph Lady Liberty can sway by
up to 3 inches, while her torch can move 5 inches.
31. Lady Liberty is thought to have been hit by around
600 bolts of lightning every year since she was built.
A photographer captured this for the first time in
2010.
32. Two people have committed suicide by jumping
off the statue, one in 1929 and the other in 1932,
while many others have jumped and survived.
33. American poet Emma Lazarus wrote about the
Statue of Liberty in a sonnet called “The New
Colossus” (1883). In 1903 the poem was engraved on
a bronze plaque and placed inside the lower level of
the pedestal on the statue.
34. The island in which it stands was previously called
Bedloe Island, but its name was changed in 1956 to
Liberty Island.
35. There are various replicas of the statue, including
a smaller version in Paris, and one on the Las Vegas
Strip in Nevada.
36. In 1944 the lights in the crown flashed “dot-dot-
dot-dash” which in the Morse code means V, for
Victory in Europe.
37. Andy Warhol painted “Statue of Liberty” as part of
his Pop Art series in the 1960s. It is estimated to be
worth in excess of $35m.
38. The statue functioned as a lighthouse for 16 years
(1886-1902), lighting a distance of up to 24 miles
away.
39. The statue will be celebrating its 127th birthday in
October 2013.
40. Miss America, the comic book character, was
granted her powers by the statue.
41. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, the
statue was closed for security reasons, with the
pedestal reopening in 2004, and the statue in 2009,
but only a limited number of visitors are able to go
up to the crown.
42. The statue was again closed in 2012 due to the
effects of Hurricane Sandy, with the island off limits
to the public. The statue is reopening to visitors on
Independence Day, July 4, 2013.
43. The statue sustained minor damage in 1916 when
German saboteurs set off an explosion during World
War One. The torch-bearing arm suffered the most
damage, with repair works costing $100,000. The
stairs in the torch were then closed to the public for
safety reasons, and have remained closed ever since.
44. No-one has been able to visit the torch since.
45. Private boats are not allowed to dock at Liberty
and Ellis islands. Therefore the only way on is via the
ferry system.
46. The statue's 300 copper pieces were transported
to America in 214 crates on the French ship Isere,
which almost sank in stormy seas.
47. Liberty Island is federal property within the
territory of the State of New York, even though it is
closer to New Jersey.
48. In 1982, it was discovered that the head had been
installed two feet off centre.
49. Two images of the statue appear on a $10 bill.
50. The cost of building the statue and pedestal
amounted to over $500,000, over $10m in today’s
money.

Nmeri17:
51. my sister Chigozie is the model the statue was sculpted after

you don go smoke that leaf again abi?

Nmeri17:
51. my sister Chigozie is the model the statue was sculpted after

decode55:


you don go smoke that leaf again abi?

help me ask am o