The Statue of Liberty is one of the most (if
not THE most) famous monuments in the world. Anyone visiting New York City can see her,
but not everyone knows that Lady Liberty has her own secrets. One of them is – she might not even be a
lady at all! Counting down from: 9. The Statue of Liberty was once split into
pieces It's really hard to picture it, but the Statue
actually arrived from France on June 17, 1885, in over 300 copper pieces. The precious cargo was traveling in 214 crates
on the French ship, Isère. The iconic arm holding the torch wasn't there,
however. It was standing in Madison Square Park for
6 years to help raise money to sponsor the pedestal. When the ship carrying the statue arrived,
200,000 people came to welcome it to the US. The official dedication ceremony took place
on October 28, 1886, with President Grover Cleveland presiding over it. 8. It was one of history's first crowd-funding
campaigns. First, French sculptor Frédéric Auguste
Bartholdi raised funds in his country to build the statue. It wasn't actually sponsored by the local
government. When it was finished, the sculptor offered
it as a gift to the US on one condition: they would build a pedestal for it. The federal government didn't like the idea,
so the status of the statue was unclear for a few years. Then, American newspaper magnate Joseph Pulitzer
stepped in. He basically started one of the first massive
crowd-funding campaigns in history, promising every contributor an honorary shout-out in
his newspapers. Even though 80% of the donations were small
ones from middle-class citizens, Pulitzer managed to collect the necessary amount from
over 120,000 donors. By the way, the famous sonnet "The New Colossus",
which can still be found on a bronze plaque inside the Statue, was also part of the fund-raising
campaign. 7. The Statue of Liberty wasn’t always green. The Statue of Liberty is made of copper, so
it was originally about the same color as a penny. According to the New York Historical Society,
it turned completely green because of oxidation by 1920. There was a time when it was half brown and
half green. The new color survived the restoration, and
they say the coating, called patina, won't ever disappear. 6. It used to serve as a lighthouse The statue was originaly supposed to serve
as a lighthouse for ships sailing into New York Harbor. And, two years after it arrived in the US,
it actually became one. For 16 years, the Statue's lamp served as
a beacon. But it wasn't bright enough, and, running
out of ideas to fix it, Bartholdi offered to cover the entire statue in gold to make
it brighter. Congress said no to that idea since it would've
been crazy expensive. 5. It's all about number seven It's easy to notice the Statue has seven spikes
on its crown, symbolizing universal liberty across the seven oceans and continents. The less obvious reference to the number 7
is in the number of windows in its head – there are 25 of them, which makes seven if you add
up the digits. There are 16 leaves around the torch, and
the monument itself is 151 feet tall. The sum of both those digits is seven as well. Clearly, that number meant a lot for the Statue's
creators. 4. The construction supporting the Statue was
designed by Gustave Eiffel The pedestal of the Statue of Liberty was
built in old Fort Wood on Liberty Island. It currently hosts museums that show the history
of the Statue with old photographs, videos, recorded oral stories, and the original torch
Lady Liberty was holding in 1886. Famous engineer Alexander Gustave Eiffel (sound
familiar?) helped design the steel internal framework to keep the statue stable. It's strong enough to withstand around 600
bolts of lightning a year. When the wind is high, the Statue can sway
by around 3 inches, and it's torch – about 5 inches. 354 steps lead up to the crown of Lady Liberty,
which is open to visitors; but the torch is off limits. Speaking of visiting the statue, have you
ever been there? (I have, and walked all those 300 some steps
to inside her head and looked out through those windows. It was kinda claustrophobic, and very cool.) Or maybe there is some other iconic monument
you have climbed? Share your experiences in the comment section
below! 3. It might have masonic ties. There's a popular theory claiming that the
Statue of Liberty was originally supposed to be dressed as an Arab peasant woman and
stand at the southern opening of Egypt’s Suez Canal. The ruler of Egypt couldn't afford it, so
Bartholdi redesigned it, giving it a different dress and new name, and sent it as a gift
to the American people to celebrate the anniversary of the American Revolution. So what does that have to do with the masons? Well, Bartholdi himself was a freemason. He represented the French Grand Orient Temple
Masons, hence his interest in Egypt. He supposedly wanted to put the statue there
to symbolize “the Orient showing the way”. The torch Lady Liberty is holding is an important
symbol in the Masonic culture as the “Torch of Enlightenment” or the “Flaming Torch
of Reason”. The masons also took part in the cornerstone
laying ceremony in 1884, and the grand master, William A. Brodie, presided over it in the
company of grand lodge members. 2. The face of the Statue of Liberty could be
that of a man When you think of the Statue of Liberty, do
you see it as a she? Most people are positive it's a representation
of the Roman goddess of freedom, Libertas. The widely accepted story is that Bartholdi
modeled her face after his mother. Author and journalist, Elizabeth Mitchell,
however, claims that the sculptor actually used his brother's face as a model! As she was studying the photographs of Bartholdi's
family, the writer noticed his mother had a different eyebrow shape, thinner nose and
lips, and smaller mouth. Then, she pointed out the striking resemblance
between the sculptor's brother in his adult years and the statue. Because of his mental health condition, Bartholdi's
brother spent years at the hospital, and Frederic would spend hours watching him. That could've helped him recreate his face
in every detail. Another theory was presented by French writer
Nathalie Salmon, who claims Lady Liberty was modeled after her ancestor Sarah Salmon. According to her, Bartholdi found Sarah's
features particularly beautiful. Even though she had immigrated to the United
States, she and her husband visited the sculptor at his studio when they briefly went back
to Paris in 1875. He could've used that opportunity to draw
Sarah, and later used those images as a model. 1. There's more than one Statue of Liberty
And I'm not talking about its plastic souvenir versions, or the one on Las Vegas Boulevard. You can find a smaller Statue of Liberty,
which was the original model for its big sister, in the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris. It's been there since 1906, after Bartholdi
gave it to the Luxembourg museum for the World’s Fair of 1900. Another version of the iconic monument was
erected on an island in the Seine River to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French
revolution in 1889. It has two dates on it - July 4, 1776, and
July 14, 1789, symbolizing the friendship of two nations, and the importance of revolution. There's also a life-size copy of the torch
on the Pont de l’alma in Paris. People from around the world sponsored its
construction as a symbol of Franco-American friendship. It was set not far from the Eiffel Tower on
the 100th anniversary of the Statue's dedication. The Statue, of course, has also inspired numerous
public and modern art projects, and one of its most famous replicas greets the visitors
of a toy store in Times Square. Hey, if you learned something new today, then
give the video a like and share it with a friend! And here are some other cool videos I think
you'll enjoy. Just click to the left or right, and stay
on the Bright Side of life!
