Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi 1871, not finishing the massive sandstone statue until 1880. In 1871, he made his first trip to the United States, where he pitched the idea of a massive statue gifted from the French to the Americans in honor of the centennial of American independence. The idea, which had first been broached to him in 1865 by his friend Édouard René de Laboulaye, resulted in the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor. After years of work and fundraising, the statue was inaugurated in 1886. During this period, Bartholdi also sculpted a number of monuments for American cities, such as a
Musée Bartholdi Musée Bartholdi The Musée Bartholdi is a museum dedicated to French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi and is situated at 30 rue des Marchands in Colmar, at the artist's birthplace. The museum has the "Musée de France" label. In 2011, the building is labeled "Maisons des Illustres" by the Ministry of Culture and Communication. In the courtyard there is a statue named "Statue des grands soutiens du monde". Two doors of the 17th century were registered as a monument historique on 18 June 1926. In 2012, the museum numbered over 16,000 visitors. Among many other, works by Bartholdi that can be seen