Italy’s “Liberty Statue”.
Did you know that? Let’s learn more about the unknown historical connections between Italy and the USA.
La Legge Nuova (“The New Law”) or sometimes called La Libertà (“Liberty”)
Camillo Pacetti, 1810
On the façade of Milan Cathedral (Duomo di Milano) there is indeed a statue that looks very much like the Statue of Liberty: it’s a female figure in marble, wearing a radiant crown and holding a torch, sculpted several decades before the famous American statue was created.
Historical details:
Name: La Legge Nuova (“The New Law”) or sometimes called La Libertà (“Liberty”)
Sculptor: Camillo Pacetti
Date: Around 1810
Located: It is one of the more than 3,000 statues that decorate the upper parts of the cathedral. It is visible on the right side of the façade, though not easily from the ground.
Curiosity:
The Statue of Liberty in New York was inaugurated only in 1886, more than 70 years later than the one in Milan.
Because of that, many historians and enthusiasts have wondered whether Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the French sculptor of the American statue, might have been inspired—directly or indirectly—by the figure on the Milan Cathedral.
In short:
The Duomo of Milan does have a statue that strongly resembles the Statue of Liberty, but it’s much older and is part of the cathedral’s religious sculpture ensemble.
Details:
The statue “La Legge Nuova” was sculpted by Camillo Pacetti in approximately 1810 and is located on the façade of the Duomo of Milan.
It depicts a female figure in a tunic, her head crowned with rays (a radiant crown), her left hand resting on a large cross and her right arm raised holding a torch
It symbolises the New Testament (“Nuovo Testamento”) in contrast with a counterpart statue for the Old Testament (“Legge Vecchia”) on the same façade.
The statue has been noted for its resemblance to the Statue of Liberty in New York, and some sources suggest that the sculptor of that monument may have visited Milan and seen it.
Statue of Liberty (New York)
The Statue of Liberty (official name Liberty Enlightening the World) was designed by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28 1886 in New York Harbor.
It stands about 305 ft (93 m) including its pedestal.
The statue depicts a robed female figure, crown with seven rays (representing the seven seas/continents), holding a torch aloft in her right hand and a tablet in her left hand (bearing the date of American Independence, July 4 1776).
At her feet lie broken chains and shackles, symbolising freedom from bondage.
There are several replicas of the Statue of Liberty in Paris, and the most famous one is located on the Île aux Cygnes, an island in the Seine River.
Here’s a quick overview 👇
Main Replica in Paris (Île aux Cygnes)
Location: Western end of the Île aux Cygnes, near the Pont de Grenelle bridge, facing west toward the Atlantic Ocean — symbolically looking in the direction of New York.
Height: About 11.5 meters (38 feet) — one-fourth the size of the original in New York.
Date: Gifted to the city of Paris by the American community in France in 1889, just three years after the New York statue was inaugurated.
Sculptor: Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the same artist who designed the original Statue of Liberty.
Other Replicas in Paris:
Musée d’Orsay:
Houses a smaller bronze version of the statue, created by Bartholdi himself.
Originally stood in the Luxembourg Gardens from 1906 until 2012, then moved indoors for preservation.
Luxembourg Gardens (Jardin du Luxembourg):
A new copy of the statue now stands there, replacing the one moved to the museum.
Musée des Arts et Métiers:
Displays one of Bartholdi’s original plaster models used in the design process of the New York statue.
Curiosity :
The Paris statue was inaugurated on July 4, 1889, to mark both the centennial of the French Revolution and the ongoing friendship between France and the United States.
Thank you for reading.
Arrivederci (‘till we meet again)
Mic
