1869: Bartholdi in Egypt
Bartholdi: From Egyptian Inspiration to American Icon
While studying ancient Egyptian giant statues, a French sculptor's imagination ignited with possibilities. As he gazed upon the massive statues, he envisioned bringing monumental statuary into the modern world. This moment of inspiration of a young 20 year old would eventually lead to the creation of one of the world's most recognizable symbols of freedom: though not in the location he initially imagined.
In 1853, young French sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi found himself standing before the massive rock statues of the sun god incarnated: Ramesses in Abu Simbel, Egypt—one of the greatest examples of colossal art ever created.
At just 20 years old, his imagination sparked as he considered what a giant statue could represent in the modern world, laying the groundwork for a creation that would become one of the world's most iconic symbols of freedom. Born in 1834 in Colmar, France, Bartholdi showed artistic talent early on. His mother, Charlotte, moved the family to Paris to ensure her sons learned from the best artists. After completing his first commissioned statue at nineteen years old, Bartholdi's journey truly took flight when he traveled to Egypt a year later. There, he encountered colossal statues that deeply inspired him, igniting a passion for monumental sculpture. He viewed these grand forms as vessels for significant ideas, describing them as embodying "power, majesty, and infinity."
In 1869, with the Suez Canal nearing completion, Bartholdi saw a chance to realize his vision in Egypt. He was hired to propose a design for a lighthouse for the canal entrance at Port Said. His design featured a female figure representing Egypt as a simple peasant woman, holding a torch to serve as a lighthouse beacon. This statue, titled "Egypt (Progress) Carrying the Light to Asia," was meant to symbolize Egypt's social and industrial progress, showcasing the ancient civilization as a modern beacon to the world. However, the Khedive turned down Bartholdi's proposal due to cost concerns, and a standard lighthouse was built instead. Yet, the idea of colossal statues stayed with Bartholdi. Following France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, he began to think about how America viewed France—a hundred years after the French had helped them gain independence.
His friendship with Édouard de Laboulaye, an advocate for American democracy, opened new doors. During their evening discussions, Laboulaye suggested that a monument celebrating liberty could be created through collaboration between France and America. This idea lingered with Bartholdi. Unable to return to his German-occupied hometown after the war, he decided to visit America. With letters of introduction from Laboulaye in hand, Bartholdi embarked on a journey that would transform his Egyptian vision into an American icon. Although Bartholdi insisted that his Statue of Liberty design was distinct from his Egyptian project, both works shared clear connections: each featured robed female figures holding torches as symbols of hope and were intended to mark significant harbor entrances. Critics accused him of simply recycling his rejected Egyptian design for America, but Bartholdi viewed these projects as sisters—related yet unique expressions of similar ideals shaped by their different cultural contexts.
Bartholdi's fascination with colossal statuary drew heavily from both Egyptian monuments and the famed Colossus of Rhodes. Interestingly, the Colossus has its own Egyptian ties; it was built to celebrate Rhodes' defense against an invasion that was thwarted with help from Egyptian ships. While later legends claimed that ships sailed between its legs (a myth Bartholdi dismissed), its harbor placement and symbolism as a guardian of liberty clearly influenced his thinking. The connection was solidified in the nameplate of the Statue of Liberty: "The New Colossus." In both his Egyptian lighthouse design and the realization of the Statue of Liberty, Bartholdi demonstrated how deeply he was inspired by Egypt. He embraced the idea of monumental art and its enduring presence from the Egyptians and combined it with Rhodes' harbor placement and freedom symbolism, forming the foundation for what would become his life’s defining work.
Perhaps what stands out most about Bartholdi's achievement is his unwavering dedication. The Statue of Liberty project consumed over 21 years of his life without any financial compensation. He took on the monumental task of fundraising, promoting, and constructing the world’s largest statue of his time. Learning from his experience with the Egyptian lighthouse plan, Bartholdi realized he would need to secure funding himself to bring his grand vision to life. As he expressed: "For long years I made many serious sacrifices of time and money to make this great life purpose happen.” Ultimately, he succeeded in creating one of the Wonders of the World while supporting his family through those two decades by working on other projects. He managed to get both France and the United States to approve the statue’s completion, even securing permission to place it on his desired island location in New York Harbor.
Egyptian Dreams and Desert Inspirations
Born in 1834 in Colmar, France, Bartholdi showed artistic promise from an early age. His mother Charlotte moved the family to Paris when he was nine, ensuring her children received education from France's finest artists despite the city's civil unrest. After completing his first commissioned work at age twenty—a bronze statue of Napoleonic General Jean Rapp—Bartholdi's artistic journey took a decisive turn when he traveled to Egypt in 1855.
Among the desert landscapes where ancient cities lay in ruins, Bartholdi encountered the colossal statues that had stood for thousands of years, silently looking from the past, but not perturbed by their moment of silence. These monuments profoundly affected the young artist, inspiring him to write: "These granite beings, in their imperturbable majesty, seem to be still listening to the most remote antiquity. Their kindly and impassible glance seems to ignore the present and to be fixed upon an unlimited future."
This journey planted the seeds of Bartholdi's passion for colossal sculpture—an art form he would later describe as appropriate only for representing ideas of equal weight in "power, majesty, and infinity." Monumental statuary was not merely about size but about embodying ideas worthy of such grand expression.
The First Light-Bearer: Egypt Carrying the Light to Asia
In 1869, the ambitious young sculptor saw an opportunity to realize his vision in Egypt. The Suez Canal was nearing completion—a project that would revolutionize global trade by connecting the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. Khedive Isma'il Pasha, Egypt's ruler, was overseeing and funding the French-led construction effort, and Bartholdi was hired to pitch a colossal lighthouse for the canal entrance at Port Said.
Bartholdi's design was remarkable, and shocking even in today’s standards: he proposed a female figure representing Egypt as a fellah (peasant woman), holding high a torch to serve as the lighthouse beacon. Standing 86 feet tall on a 48-foot pedestal, this statue would be titled "Egypt (Progress) Carrying the Light to Asia." The feminine form to him seems a theme—Bartholdi understood the ancient tradition of representing lands, continents, and even concepts as women, a practice dating back to Egyptian and Greek art.
The statue was designed to symbolize Egypt's social and industrial progress, positioning the ancient civilization as a modern beacon to the world. This statue was more than decoration, it was to be a functional lighthouse guiding ships through the newly created passage between continents.
However, the Khedive rejected Bartholdi's proposal, citing the prohibitive cost. In 1869, a conventional lighthouse designed by François Coignet was built instead. Bartholdi's grand vision would remain as only a painting in the Egyptian office.
From Rejection to Reimagination
The seed of collosal statues used to signify a changing world, as planted in Egypt, continued to grow in Bartholdi's mind. After France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871)—during which Bartholdi himself led a local team to defend his hometown, only to see it absorbed by Germany—Bartholdi found himself drawn to a new idea. Sparked by a conversation of soldiers discussing how Americans viewed France, he found himself increasingly interested in how France was viewed by America, the leaders of the New world, a hundred years after the French helped them gain their dream. He overheard a conversation of Americans standing up for Germany, who were now Americans, alongside and amongst even Germans who could appreciate France for their new life in America.
His friendship with Édouard de Laboulaye, a scholar of American democracy and abolitionist, opened a new path. During evening gatherings at Laboulaye's home near Versailles, conversations often turned to international relations. In one such discussion about French-American friendship of the last hundred years, and just 6 years before the 100 year anniversary of Independence, Laboulaye suggested that a monument celebrating liberty might be built through the united efforts of both nations.
This conversation stayed with Bartholdi. After the war, unable to return to his German-occupied hometown, he decided to visit America. Armed with letters of introduction from Laboulaye and influential friends, the artist embarked on a journey that would ultimately reshape his vision of Egyptian monuments into an American icon.
The Sister Statues: Common Roots, Different Destinies
Though Bartholdi adamantly defended his Statue of Liberty design as distinct from his Egyptian project, the two works share undeniable connections. Both featured robed female figures holding aloft a torch to serve as inspirations of hope. Both were intended to mark important entrances to important harbors—one at the mouth of the Suez Canal, the other at the gateway to America in New York.
Some critics in America mocked Bartholdi’s vision since its inception. They accused Bartholdi of simply repurposing his rejected Egyptian design for America. He firmly denied this, writing: "I never executed anything for the Khedive, except for a little sketch which has remained in his palace."
Yet the influence is clear. Both statues embodied Bartholdi's belief that monumental art should represent profound ideas. He saw both Egypt and America as places of immense importance, and of worthy location for his grand woman representing an enlightened world.
In Egypt, his grand idea was progress bringing ancient wisdom to the modern world. In America, it became "Liberty Enlightening the World"—a phrase that echoes the Egyptian statue's purpose of carrying light to Asia. Seeing how the Suez Canal still overseas 30% of global ship traffic, it can be said its light illuminated more than mere Asia.
Bartholdi saw these projects as sisters rather than duplicates—related but distinct expressions of similar ideals in different cultural contexts. Both represented female personifications bringing light to the world, one from the cradle of civilization, the other from the promise of a free future.
Ancient Inspirations: Egypt and Rhodes
Bartholdi's fascination with colossal statuary drew heavily from both Egyptian monuments and the legendary Colossus of Rhodes. The Colossus itself has a fascinating Egyptian connection—it was erected in 290 BC to celebrate Rhodes' defense against a nearly catastrophic invasion of a rival general’s attack, which had been avoided only through the help of Egyptian ships. Both generals, the one invading Rhodes, Turkey, and the ones from Egypt defending it, were generals of Alexander, fighting over the territory split up after his sons were murdered, and his immense empire was split up.
The Rhodes colossus, a massive statue of the sun god Helios, stood over 107 feet tall at the harbor entrance. Though later legends claimed ships sailed between its legs (a myth Bartholdi himself dismissed as a 16th-century fabrication), its harbor placement and symbolic meaning as a guardian of liberty clearly influenced Bartholdi's thinking.
The link to this statue dedicated to the sun god, known as the Colossus, a sun god inspired by the more ancient Egyptian sun/son god Ra, who transformed into the Greek sun god known as Helios/Apollo, was cemented in the name plate on the Statue of Liberty as "The New Colossus”.
In both his Egyptian lighthouse design and the realization of the Statue of Liberty, Bartholdi showcases his inspiration from Egypt. From these people came the idea of art that could be of monumental scale and enduring presence, surviving for thousands of years. From Rhodes came the harbor placement and association with freedom. From Egypt came the idea of progress, represented by a woman holding enlightenment for the world. Together, they formed the conceptual foundation for what would become his life's defining work.
A Labor of Love, Not Profit
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Bartholdi's achievement was his personal dedication. The Statue of Liberty project took over 21 years of his life, of which he received no payment. Instead, he took on the momentous task himself of fundraising, promoting, and building the world's largest statue of its time. If he learned anything from the Egyptian lighthouse plan, it was that he would have to secure funding himself for such an idealized form to be realized.
As he wrote: "For long years I made many serious sacrifices of time and money to make this great life purpose happen.” But if the burden had been hard to bear, he found his reward. He succeeding in building one of the Wonders of the World. What is incredible is that he was able to support his family through this 2 decades of his life. He continued working on other projects, but got both governments, of France and the United States, to sign off on the statue’s completion. He got the US to allow him to place his statue on the island of his first choice, as well as design and fund the statue’s base, which was the largest project of stonework to be built in its time.
Bartholdi traveled extensively in America, meeting with prominent figures including President Grant, various poets and Senators. He immersed himself in American culture and landscape, sketching potential sites for his monument and building relationships with potential supporters. He completed what could have been an impossible fantasy for most. Yet somehow, he gained support from the French government (at the very end to ship the statue) all the way to meeting with the President of the United States and getting approval from Congress to accept the generous gift.
When fundraising lagged for the pedestal in America, Bartholdi published his own modest booklet in 1885, priced at 75 cents, to help raise funds. He personally oversaw the construction in Paris, the disassembly into 210 crates, and the reassembly in New York Harbor.
In all his work, Bartholdi was never paid for his work. But to be able to make his dream a reality, was more than most artists get to see in their lifetimes. He saw the statue as his "daughter," with the face modeled after his mother, and the model posing for the stature becoming his wife. He created a legacy that would outlive him and speak to future generations of this idea of freedom and friendship.
Legacy: Two Lights Connected Across Time
Though Bartholdi's Egyptian light-bearer never materialized, her spirit lives on in the Statue of Liberty. I only wish the Egyptian lighthouse could have been built so others could understand her significance.
The connection between ancient Egyptian monumental art and America's iconic symbol represents a fascinating thread in cultural history—a torch passed from one civilization to another across thousands of years.
When Lady Liberty was dedicated in 1886, few Americans knew of her Egyptian influence. Yet these sister statues, materialized or not, embodied a common vision: enlightenment extending beyond borders.
Bartholdi's genius lay in his ability to translate the majesty of ancient colossal art into a modern context, creating a monument that would speak to future generations, and actually getting it done. As he watched his statue rise in New York Harbor, he told a reporter: "My dream has been realized. I can only say that I am enchanted. This thing will live to eternity, when we shall have passed away, and everything living with us has moldered away." This was the entire idea of Egyptian collossal art, words and statues that would bring immortality to those it represented.
While Egypt's lighthouse became an unrealized dream, the spirit that inspired it found immortality in her torch. Her fire continued, albeit in new hands. Both used their guiding lights to invite travelers to new horizons, representing two distinct expressions of the same artistic vision—one rooted in ancient wisdom, the other looking toward the promise of freedom.
In Bartholdi's work, we see how artistic inspiration travels across cultures and time—from ancient Egypt to Rhodes in Turkey/Greece, to France and America in the 1800’s, creating connections that continue to illuminate our world.
Bartholdi Timeline:
1833 Bartholdi born in Colmar, France
(right up to the border of Germany. Later in his life he was not able to return home due to German occupation of it, so he went to America)
1852: @19 year old sculpture of francesca da remini
1853: @20 years old, Bartholdi visited Egypt
1863: He built a fountain in his hometown and many other projects
1868: @35, Bartholdi went back to Egypt
Went back for the work on the Suez Canal lighthouse, which was not chosen
1870: French war with Germany, Bartholdi oversaw arms being received from America
overheard talks of sailors about Germans, and Bartholdi met with his crew and discussed the idea of a joint project between America and France (just 6 years before the centennial)
Prussia aimed to unify the German states their own Prussian leadership, a goal that France opposed. Following Prussia's victory over Austria in 1866, France felt its dominance in continental Europe was threatened. The candidacy of a Prussian prince for the Spanish throne, which France feared, became the immediate catalyst for war. Bismarck manipulated a telegram (the Ems Telegram) to provoke a French declaration of war, which he achieved. The war resulted in a decisive Prussian victory, leading to the unification of Germany and the handing over of some French territory (Alsace-Lorraine) to the new German Empire.
1874 Statue of Liberty plan launched to the public
1876, 100 years from 1776, Independence of America
The hand carrying the flame was sent to US for the Exhibition in Philadelphia, celebrating the centennial of an independent America,
1877, Bartholdi back in US, petitioned congress for the site, which was accepted
1878: The Statue of Liberty’s head was displayed at the Paris World’s Fair
(Where Eifell Tower was built), Eifel became the engineer on the Statue of Liberty
1878: Built a statue for heroes in french german wars, into solid rock (like Egypt)
1880: All funds obtained for the statue’s construction in France
1881: Framework pieces put in place (within a year of funding, building went fast)
1883: Construction nearly finished, pedestal not far enough along in the USA, so the statue remained in view in Paris
The French government agreed they would supply an official French ship to transport the statue under the official banner of France
The ship’s name was the Isere from Rouen
1885: Joseph Pulitzer became involved with the Statue of Liberty
where he used his magazine to raise funds for the pedestal, after Congress failed to supply what was anticipated
1885, France starts to take the statue down to prepare for shipment
1886: Official unveiling of the statue in New your as "Liberty Enlightening the World”
(10 years later than expected, but completed!)
