Liberty Enlightening the World — Bartholdi, New York
Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, with Eiffel and Company · Liberty Island · New York Harbor, USA
Photograph by LostplanetKD73, via Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · 20 October 2024, camera date. Full photograph shown; resized for display.
The copper giant at the entrance to New York Harbor was made in France by the sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, on a framework by Eiffel, and dedicated on 28 October 1886. Bartholdi called it La Liberté éclairant le monde, Liberty Enlightening the World. National Park Service · UNESCO Checked
5 things to know
- Built in France, rebuilt in New YorkThe statue was built in France from 1875 to 1884, shipped to New York in 1885 and reassembled on its pedestal. National Park Service Reported
- A gift for a centenaryFrance gave it to the United States to mark the centenary of American independence. The tablet in her left arm reads “July IV, MDCCLXXVI”, 4 July 1776. UNESCO · National Park Service Checked
- 151 feet of copperThe statue is 151 feet 1 inch tall, 305 feet 1 inch with the pedestal. It weighs an estimated 560,000 pounds, 179,200 of them copper, and its green colour comes from natural oxidation. National Park Service Reported
- The torch is not the originalThe torch was replaced in 1985, and the original went to the Statue of Liberty Museum, which was scheduled to open in May 2019. The flame of today’s torch is covered in 24k gold leaf. Smithsonian Magazine · National Park Service Reported
- Closed since 1916After the Black Tom explosion in 1916, the military closed the torch to visitors. Smithsonian Magazine Reported
Check-in guide
- 📍
- Liberty Island, at the entrance to New York Harbor. UNESCO’s World Heritage listing covers the whole island. UNESCO Checked
- 🪜
- The crown is 377 steps up from the ground; its small windows look out over the New York City skyline. National Park Service Reported
- 🔥
- The torch itself has been closed to visitors since 1916. Smithsonian Magazine Reported
Sightings
- 188628 Oct
Dedicated · NPS
- 1984World Heritage
Inscribed · UNESCO
- 201820 Nov
Original torch moves · Smithsonian
- 20242 Jun
AskALotl photo · camera date
- 202420 Oct
LostplanetKD73 photo · camera date
- 20264 Jul
US Navy photo · camera date
Green stamps are camera dates of photographs on Wikimedia Commons. Amber stamps are dates from the National Park Service, UNESCO and Smithsonian Magazine, not photographs. The status stamp follows the newest dated photograph we found, a U.S. Navy photo of 4 July 2026.
On the record
The sculptor’s own name for it
“La Liberté éclairant le monde”
Bartholdi’s title, which the Park Service translates as “Liberty Enlightening the World”.
Why nobody climbs to the flame
“the military closed the torch down.”
What happened after the 1916 Black Tom explosion, in Brigit Katz’s report on the original torch’s move to the new museum.
The facts
- Work
- Liberty Enlightening the World (La Liberté éclairant le monde), known as the Statue of Liberty. National Park Service · UNESCO Checked
- Sculptor
- Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi. National Park Service · UNESCO Checked
- Framework
- Eiffel and Company; UNESCO credits Gustave Eiffel with the steel framework. National Park Service · UNESCO Checked
- Pedestal
- Designed by Richard Morris Hunt; General Charles P. Stone was engineer for the pedestal. National Park Service Reported
- Date
- Built in France 1875–1884, dedicated on 28 October 1886. National Park Service · UNESCO Checked
- Size
- 151 feet 1 inch (46.05 m); 305 feet 1 inch with the pedestal. National Park Service Reported
- Material
- Copper, turned green by oxidation; about 179,200 pounds of copper in an estimated total of 560,000 pounds. National Park Service Reported
- Torch
- Replaced in 1985; the original was moved to the new Statue of Liberty Museum. Smithsonian Magazine Reported
- Status
- Seen 4 July 2026 in a camera-dated U.S. Navy photograph taken during the 4 July 2026 Parade of Sail in New York Harbor. US Navy, Wikimedia Commons Checked
- Our photo
- Street Art Utopia’s photo shows a man who seems to light a cigarette from the torch, taken from a low angle. Photographer and date are unrecorded. Street Art Utopia Unconfirmed
Related
- Only in America (14 Photos vol. 2): the SAU collection with the “Lady Liberty’s Lighter” photo
- Fun With Statues (26 Photos): SAU’s earlier collection of people playing with statues
- The Thinker by Auguste Rodin: another French sculpture with its own Artwork File
All sources (6)
Official records
- National Park Service: Statue of Liberty facts, the Park Service’s fact page. Name, sculptor, engineers, Hunt’s pedestal, building and dedication dates, size, weight, copper, crown steps, gold leaf and the tablet.
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Statue of Liberty, World Heritage listing, inscribed 1984. Bartholdi, Eiffel’s framework, the centenary gift, 1886, and Liberty Island.
Reporting
- Smithsonian Magazine: The Statue of Liberty’s Original Torch Gets a New Home, Brigit Katz, 20 November 2018. The 1985 torch replacement, the museum and the 1916 closure.
Dated photographs
- LostplanetKD73: Statue of Liberty – October 2024.jpg, camera date 20 October 2024, own work, CC0. The hero; the share image places it on a blurred background at 16:9.
- AskALotl: Front view of Statue of Liberty with pedestal and base 2024.jpg, camera date 2 June 2024, own work, CC0. Used here only as a dated sighting.
- U.S. Navy (Seaman Martin Valdez): MH-60 of VX 1 squadron flies past the Statue of Liberty.jpg, camera date 4 July 2026, U.S. Navy photo by Seaman Martin Valdez, public domain. The status photograph.
Artwork File · Last checked 15 October 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files