Statue of Liberty

Statue of Liberty’s 125th birthday
The Statue of Liberty was a gift to the people of the United States from the people of France to celebrate
America’s Independence from Britain and to assure a long and valued relationship between America and
France. The building of the statue was begun in France in 1875 and completed in June of 1884. It was
then shipped to New York in 219 crates holding 350 individual pieces. It took 4 months to reassemble
the statue on Liberty Island and finally President Grover Cleveland dedicated the statue on October 28,
1886.
Frédéric Bartholdi was the sculptor who designed and created our statue. He first made a 6-foot tall
model and then did the math.
1. Our New York Harbor statue is 111.5 feet tall. What do you think Frédéric’s multiplication factor
(how many times greater) was as he enlarged the dimensions from his model?
Frédéric Bartholdi’s actual model in the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris, France
2. The thickness of our giant statue in NYC is 35 feet at her waist. See if you can figure out the
model’s waist thickness. Show your work.
3. This is a photo from 1885 when the statue pieces were
uncrated on Liberty Island. Her face is more than 8 feet tall.
What was the height of the 6-foot model’s face?
4. Frédéric’s model was about 6 feet tall which is slightly larger than life-size. Measure or estimate
the size of your big toe and guestimate the size of the statue’s big toe in the 1885 picture below.
Extra of Experts: The table in her left hand is inscribed with this date; JULY IV MDCCLXXVI. How
does that translate and what do you suppose it meant?
I just love this picture. The man in the center of the photo was Frédéric Bartholdi, the French sculptor who
designed and built the statue. Cameras were a new invention, so this photo had to have been posed and the
people required to stand still in a pose during the film exposure. Notice that there is a totally white man above
Frédéric. He must have been the plasterer.
Happy Birthday Statue of Liberty!
Brought to you by Yummymath.com
Source: http://www.statueofliberty.org/Fun_Facts.html
http://www.millionface.com/l/statue-of-liberty-the-making/
http://www.french-at-a-touch.com/Statue_of_Liberty/statue_of_liberty_ii.htm
http://www.456fis.org/ASSEMBLING_THE_STATUE_OF_LIBERTY.htm