Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio, Pay
Speaker 1: brain Stuff Lauren boge Obam. Here these iconic words are
Speaker 1: etched into a bronze plaque located in the pedestal of
Speaker 1: the Statue of Liberty. Give me your tired, your poor,
Speaker 1: your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse
Speaker 1: of your teeming shore. Send these the homeless tempest tossed
Speaker 1: to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
Speaker 1: The words are part of the New Colossus, the Sonnet
Speaker 1: written in three by fifth generation American Jew M. A. Lazarus.
Speaker 1: She wrote the New Colossus to help raise money for
Speaker 1: the pedestal of the new statue at the request of
Speaker 1: a friend. Lazarus, at that time was also known for
Speaker 1: working with East European Jewish refugees, and new a poem
Speaker 1: of such significance could bring attention to the plight of
Speaker 1: refugees coming to America. But today Lazarus's words and the
Speaker 1: original intention behind the Sonnet have raised new questions about
Speaker 1: the meaning of the Statue of Liberty and what it represents.
Speaker 1: So how did Lady Liberty come to the US and
Speaker 1: what does this copper statue that's stood in New York
Speaker 1: Harbor for so many decades symbolize is she still really
Speaker 1: a beacon of freedom? To millions around the world. The
Speaker 1: Statue of Liberty has become such a legendary representation of
Speaker 1: New York City and America itself, it's hard to imagine
Speaker 1: a time before it found a place in the skyline.
Speaker 1: It all began in the eighteen sixties when French poet
Speaker 1: and anti slavery activist Eduard de la Boulay proposed the
Speaker 1: idea of a post Civil War commemoration of America's newfound
Speaker 1: freedoms and democracy. He believed France should give a great
Speaker 1: monument as a gift to the United States to celebrate
Speaker 1: both the Union's victory in the Civil War and the
Speaker 1: abolition of slavery. The idea resonated with a young French
Speaker 1: sculptor named Frederic August bartle Dy, who had been experimenting
Speaker 1: with large scale works. Barkele Dy started drafting designs, and
Speaker 1: the original goal was to complete the ambitious artistic endeavor
Speaker 1: by eighteen seventy six, to mark the centennial of the
Speaker 1: American Declaration of Independence. The she was set to represent
Speaker 1: the goodwill between America and France. There was a little
Speaker 1: financial snag though well a big financial snag in both
Speaker 1: participating nations. To raise the necessary funds for construction, the
Speaker 1: French government introduced everything from public fees to a fundraising lottery,
Speaker 1: and the United States held auctions and benefit theatrical events,
Speaker 1: and Lazarus penned the new Colosses for the Art and
Speaker 1: Literary auction to help generate money for the pedestal. While
Speaker 1: all this was taking place, bartol D recruited an experienced
Speaker 1: engineer to help troubleshoot structural issues with the massive sculpture enter,
Speaker 1: Alexander Gustav Eiffel and the man responsible for another internationally
Speaker 1: recognized architectural wonder, the Eiffel Tower. Together with bartl D,
Speaker 1: Eiffel helped design the four hundred and fifty thousand pounds
Speaker 1: structure that's about two hundred thousand kilograms, and specifically had
Speaker 1: a hand in planning out the iron pylon and secondary
Speaker 1: scaltal framework. The Statue of Liberty was finally completed in
Speaker 1: France in July of eighty four and arrived in three
Speaker 1: hundred and fifty individual pieces packed in two hundred and
Speaker 1: fourteen crates. In New York Harbor in June of eight five,
Speaker 1: ten years after her original projected debut, The Statue of
Speaker 1: Liberty became an official New York City icon, and President
Speaker 1: Grover Cleveland oversaw the official dedication ceremony on October eighteen,
Speaker 1: eighty six. Lady Liberty herself has a full and proper name,
Speaker 1: the Statue of Liberty, Enlightening the World. The statue's face
Speaker 1: was apparently inspired by the face of Berkeld's mother. Made
Speaker 1: from iron steel and three hundred layers of hand hammered copper,
Speaker 1: weighing thirty one tons, Lady Liberty herself stands approximately a
Speaker 1: hundred and eleven feet that's thirty four meters tall. She
Speaker 1: reaches an astounding three hundred five ft or ninety three
Speaker 1: ms if you take her pedestal and torch into account,
Speaker 1: that's the equivalent height of a twenty two story building.
Speaker 1: The copper coating her is three thirty seconds of an
Speaker 1: inch thick or about two point five millimeters, which happens
Speaker 1: to be the same thicknes as two American pennies placed together,
Speaker 1: while the internal structure is comprised of cast iron and
Speaker 1: stainless steel. As for her, signature green hue. That's due
Speaker 1: to the natural oxidation of that copper coating. When the
Speaker 1: statue was originally completed in eighteen eighty six, she had
Speaker 1: more of a copper penny tinge, but over about three
Speaker 1: decades the brown hue fully oxidized to form the sea
Speaker 1: green color, otherwise known as a patina four. The statue
Speaker 1: got to make over when her original torch was replaced
Speaker 1: by a new copper one covered in twenty four carrot
Speaker 1: gold leaf. The original torch is on display at the
Speaker 1: monument's museum. While the Statue of Liberty emerged from a
Speaker 1: desire to represent an alliance between America and France, its
Speaker 1: core meaning is a mutual desire for freedom liberty for
Speaker 1: all people all over the world. It's no accident that
Speaker 1: the Statue of Liberty was placed to face southeast. From
Speaker 1: that vantage point, she makes a perfect welcoming symbol for
Speaker 1: visitors and immigrants from her home on Liberty Island. The
Speaker 1: seven pointed crown on her head symbolizes the seven continents,
Speaker 1: seven seas, and the broken shackles at her feet represent
Speaker 1: freedom from oppression. Lady Liberty possesses a few other symbols
Speaker 1: as well, She's holding a tablet in her left hand
Speaker 1: inscribed with the date July four, seventeen seventy six, the
Speaker 1: date of American independence, written in Roman numerals, and that
Speaker 1: giant torch in her right hand. It's meant to represent enlightenment,
Speaker 1: a fitting accessory for liberty enlightening the world. As for
Speaker 1: the Lazarus poem, some history experts, like Robert J. McNamara
Speaker 1: believe that while bart Goldie had originally envisioned Lady Liberty
Speaker 1: as a symbol of America exuding its own freedom, the
Speaker 1: new colossus represented America as a refuge for oppressed people
Speaker 1: seeking liberty, and an understanding by people born as American
Speaker 1: citizens that had we been born elsewhere, we might be
Speaker 1: similarly seeking liberty from oppression and suffering. While there may
Speaker 1: be countless interpretations, dissections, and misreadings of Lady Liberty's many
Speaker 1: possible meanings, one thing is for sure. She has indeed
Speaker 1: served as america One woman welcome committee for well over
Speaker 1: a century. When the US government opened a federal immigration
Speaker 1: station on Ellis Island in eight two, about twelve million
Speaker 1: immigrants were eventually processed there before receiving permission to enter
Speaker 1: the country. All of whom were greeted by the site
Speaker 1: of the Statue of Liberty nearby. Today, the Statue of
Speaker 1: Liberty remains a major attraction for citizens and visitors from
Speaker 1: all over the world. Approximately four point five million people
Speaker 1: make the pilgrimage to see her every year. One of
Speaker 1: the most popular attractions is climbing up to her crown,
Speaker 1: which has twenty five windows overlooking New York City and
Speaker 1: the Harbor. It's a strenuous climb up a tight spiral staircase,
Speaker 1: but visitors are rewarded with panoramic views of Brooklyn as
Speaker 1: well as Gustav's original supporting iron and steel framework. The
Speaker 1: American Jewish Historical Society is leading a three year initiative
Speaker 1: called the mL Lazarus Project, which teaches students about the
Speaker 1: woman who penned the new colossus. Part of the project
Speaker 1: as a nationwide contest calling for new poems about the statue.
Speaker 1: Winners will be announced in May of To learn more,
Speaker 1: go to a j h S dot org. Today's episode
Speaker 1: was written by Michelle Konstantinovski and produced by Tyler Clang.
Speaker 1: Brain Stuff is a production of iHeart Radio's How Stuff Works.
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