The Statue of Liberty: A History

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The Statue of Liberty: Replicas, Replicas, and More Replicas

I've seen the Statue of Liberty and I've never been to New York. And no I didn't look at a picture, I've done that plenty of times. Instead I decided to take a nice afternoon walk in my neighborhood and ended up at the foot of the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty is so iconic that many replicas have been built all over the world. But France holds an larger sense of pride than the other countries since it was France that gifted the Statue of Liberty to America.

Independence Day Inauguration

The Statue of Liberty that stands on the manmade island called the Parc des Cygnes was inaugurated on July 4, 1889. It is one fourth the scale of the statue in New York. And unlike many of the other replicas in France, this one was gifted by America in honor of the 100 year anniversary of the French Revolution.

The Statue of Liberty Seen from the Parc des Cygnes

Two Dates One Tablet

On the tablet of this replica, two dates are inscribed. Of course the usual July 4, 1776 is inscribed. But the addition to this specific statue is July 14, 1789, the day of the Storming of the Bastille and the beginning of the French Revolution. Most other replicas don't carry both dates in Paris, but since this was gifted on the centenary of the Revolution, this addition was made.

Other Statues in Paris

There are replica statues all over the world, many of them in France. Paris alone has a few. There is a liberty flame near the Pont d'Alma, which today is more associated with the death of Princess Diana than the Flame of Liberty, which is a full scale model of the flame from the Statue of Liberty. There is also a replica statue in the Musee d'Orsay, gifted by Bartholdi, that once stood in the Luxembourg Gardens.