In 2020 the Met's conservation team restored Bartholdi's original presentation charcoal of the Statue of Liberty. While the piece isn't available for viewing to the public, we decided to further restore the image to its original beauty, and make it available for the first time as a reproduction for your home. Bartholdi's original drawing, unfortunately, had numerous water stains along with its paper decomposing. The Met team was able to repair the water stains beautifully. We scanned and restored the original luminosity of the sheet and faded white chalk highlights. 

The History

This large-scale overhead drawing, entitled "The Statue of Liberty Illuminating the World," provides an impressive aerial view of the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island with New Jersey, Manhattan, and Brooklyn visible in the background, taken at night.

Drawn in charcoal and chalk on a 33 x 51-inch sheet by Bartholdi himself, this monumental work played a crucial role in the fundraising campaign in the United States to raise funds for the statue's base upon which the statue would be placed. The people of France gifted the massive bronze statue, but its pedestal was to be paid for and made by the American people, and this 1875 drawing was used to inspire that campaign.

Along with 3D models created to show off the statue, this drawing and copies made of it, were circulated throughout the country to promote the Statue of Liberty. The design for the base went through various stages. Initially, its shape was that of a pyramid (design preserved in a drawing in Musée Bartholdi, Colmar), which then evolved into the hexagonally-shaped structure, represented in this drawing. The final design, which simplified the shape of the base into a square, was made by the American architect Richard Morris Hunt, who was also contracted in 1881 to execute it after the successful completion of the fundraising campaign.

Have something truly original in your home that celebrates the history of Lady Liberty in first-of-its-kind museum-quality posters made on thick Japanese archival matte paper. 

• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 189 g/m²
• Opacity: 94%
• ISO brightness: 104%
• Paper is sourced from Japan - Printed in the USA