Lady in the Harbor
A Human Statue of Liberty made up of 18,000 men.
She is the gateway to a new world and the hope of the world. She inspires us to think of our potentiality and the dignity of the human person. She endures as a human global community – offering a worldwide welcome.
Important Dates in History
1876: Sculpture Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was commissioned to design a statue for the United States.
1884: The statue was completed in France.
1885: The statue arrived in New York Harbor.
1886: The Statue of Liberty was dedicated.
1924: The Statue of Liberty became a national monument.
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 of love inscribed JULY IV MDCCLXXVI (July 4, 1776), 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.
Patriotic Human Statue of Liberty