Statue of Liberty 1889, there were 38 U.S. states), although this was not done. Above that, a balcony was placed on each side, framed by pillars. Bartholdi placed an observation platform near the top of the pedestal, above which the statue itself rises. According to author Louis Auchincloss, the pedestal "craggily evokes the power of an ancient Europe over which rises the dominating figure of the Statue of Liberty". The committee hired former army General Charles Pomeroy Stone to oversee the construction work. Construction on the foundation began in 1883, and the pedestal's cornerstone was laid in 1884. In Hunt's original conception, the
Bartholdi Fountain repaired deterioration to the metals inside and out, and also provided modern pumps and motors, a new water treatment and filtration system, and a zinc coating to preserve the original cast-iron of the fountain. The fountain was returned to Bartholdi Park in spring 2011. The fountain is composed of a series of basins, supported by sculptures of classical figures. The cast iron is coated with bronze, stands thirty feet high, and weighs thirty thousand pounds. It stands in the center of a large circular marble pool. Three figures of women, standing on a triangle pedestal with an ornamental design of