Description of the attraction
The Parisian Statue of Liberty, a four times smaller copy of the American one, stands on a narrow artificial dam on the Seine near the Eiffel Tower - Swan Island. The statue is perfectly visible from the windows of cars passing along the embankments.
The sculpture is a reciprocal gift in 1899 to the French from the United States. In 1886, the United States accepted the famous giant statue that adorns the entrance to New York Harbor as a gift from the people of France. The author in both cases is the same: the French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi.
The original, "American" statue was conceived as a gift from the people of France to the friendly American people for the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. France created the statue itself and delivered it across the ocean, while the United States built a worthy pedestal for it. The work was carried out on voluntary donations from citizens: lotteries were held in France, in the USA - exhibitions, auctions and boxing matches. Gustave Eiffel, the future author of the Eiffel Tower, was involved in the design of the powerful pedestal.
Parts of the 46-meter statue were brought to the United States by the French military frigate Ysere and assembled in four months. The gift for the anniversary of the country's independence was exactly ten years late. But the sculpture has become a national symbol of the United States in an instantly recognizable way.
In 1889, the United States made a reciprocal gift to France: a reduced copy of the Statue of Liberty, 11.5 meters high, was brought to Paris. It was she who was placed on Swan Island, facing west, towards the elder sister.
In addition to this copy, there are three smaller statues of Liberty in Paris. One is on display at the Museum of Arts and Crafts - you can get close to it and see it in every detail. The second stood in the Luxembourg Gardens for a long time, but after restoration it moved to the Musée d'Orsay in 2012. The need for restoration was caused by the fact that vandals stole the torch that Freedom is holding in her right hand. Finally, on the bow of the barge "Nina", moored not far from the same Eiffel Tower, there is another small copy of the famous sculpture by Bartholdi. Thus, there are four Statues of Liberty in Paris, not counting the one that is visible on the pediment of the American Bar restaurant on Boulevard des Capucines.
In addition, at the entrance to the Alma Bridge, there is the Flame of Freedom - a gilded copy of an element of the sculpture. The same Flame was installed in the courtyard of the US Embassy in France.
