StAtUe Of LiBeRtY

Type: cultural

Criteria: i, vi

Inscription:1984

Location: Liberty Island, New York, U.S.

Area: 49,000 m2

Visitors: 4,235,595(in 2005)

Liberty Enlightening the World know more commonly as the Statue of Liberty. It's a large statue one of the most famuos buildings in the world. It was a present from the people of Franch as a token of friendship to the USA. It was unveiled on October 28, 1886. It stands at Liberty Island as a welcome to all visitors immigrants and returning Americans. The Statue of Liberty was built to commemorate the hunfredth anniversary of American Independence from Britain. Frédéric August Bartholdi sculpted the statue,  Alexendre Gustave Eiffel engineered the internal structure. Eugéne Viollet-le-Duc was responsible for the choice of copper in restate's construction and adoption of the repoussé technique.The statue is of a robed woman holding a lit flame. It stands atop a rectangular stonework pedestal. The statue is 46,02 m tall. It's made of 32,5 tonnes of copper and was constructed in Paris and then taken apart for shipping. I took 15 years to build with money raised by the French people through lotteries and dinner parties. The Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States and it represents liberty and escape from oppression. It was the first sight that greeted immigrants who sailed from Europe to the USA. The Statue of Liberty's classical appearance derives from Libertas, ancient Rome's goddess of freedom from slavery, oppression and tyranny.

- Her left foot tramples broken shackles at her feet, in symbolism of the United States wish to be free from oppression and tyranny.

-The seven spikes on the crown represent the Seven Seas and seven continents.

-Her torch signifies enlightenment.

-The tablet in her hand represents knowledge and shows the date July 4, 1776, the day the United States declared its independence from Britain.

The Statue of Liberty, also know as " Lady Liberty", functioned as a lighthouse from 1886 to 1902.

There are 354 steps inside the statue and its pedestal. The interior of the statue used to be open to visitors and about 30 people at a time could fit up into the crown. There are 25 windows in the crown. In 1984 the statue was closed so that $ 62 million renovation could be performed for the statue's centennial. It was reopened on July 3, 1986.

Liberty Island closed on September 11, 2001. It's reopened in December, the monument reopened on August 3, 2004. The interior of statue remains closed, although a glass ceiling in the pedestal allows for views of Eiffel's iron framework. The National Park Service claims that the statue is not shut because of a terrorist threat,  but principally bacause of a long list of fire regulation contraventions. The museum and ten-story pedestal are open for visits but are only accessible if visitors have a " Monument Access Pass".