Baby Liberty will stop first to spend the Fourth of July with her big sister on Ellis Island before continuing on to Washington, D.C., where she’ll stand for the next decade outside the residence of the French ambassador. There, she’ll be visible to the public from the street. The inauguration ceremony at her new home will take place on the French National Holiday, le Quatorze Juillet, a.k.a. Bastille Day.

The Statue of Liberty, a.k.a. Liberty Enlightening the World, a work by Auguste Bartholdi, was a gift from the people of France to the United States, i.e. from one republic to another. Originally intended to mark the American centennial of 1876, it wasn’t erected in New York Harbor until 1886.

Numbered 1 of 8, this bronze version, made in 2011, is based on the original plaster model that served as the basis for Baby Liberty’s big sister. That painted plaster model can be seen inside the former chapel that is now a part of the Musée des Arts et Métiers.

The Statue of Liberty was first erected in Paris before being dismantled and sent over to the United States in 350 pieces. Gustave Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame designed the iron frame that holds the copper sheets that make up the monumental version of the statue. The Musée des Arts et Métiers is the depository of the original plaster model as well as various documents, photographs and sketches that tell the history of its creation because of the technological feat that its creation and assembly represent. The bulk of the collection was a gift from Jeanne Emilie Bartholdi, the sculptor’s widow. Some of those photographs from the 1870s and 1880s can be seen here.

Watch this video of Baby Liberty’s departure from the courtyard of the museum.

© 2021 – text, photo, video – Gary Lee Kraut

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