A statue of Louis XVI by Achille Valois arrived in Louisville, Kentucky, in December 1966 and was installed in July 1967, it will likely be reinstalled before 2029.
| Statue of Louis XVI | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The statue in 2008 | |
 | |
| Artist | Achille Valois |
| Subject | Louis XVI |
| Location | Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. |
| 38°15′16″N 85°45′37″W / 38.25436°N 85.76014°W | |
Description
edit| Weight | Height | Material |
|---|---|---|
| 6.5 tons | 6′10″ | Carrara marble with limestone base |
History
editThe statue's first home was the town square of Montpellier, France, in 1829. There, it was reviled and toppled over in less than year. It was then moved to a military dungeon and stayed there until it was discovered by an officer taking inventory in 1899. In 1966, Montpellier decided to give the statue to Louisville, Kentucky, since the city is named after Louis XVI. It was shipped on a U.S. Navy ship to Norfolk, Virginia, where it sat for a week in Naval Station Pier 2 in late 1966. The statue was then put on a train and made it to Louisville on Christmas Day 1966. The mayor of Louisville at the time, Kenneth Schmied, is quoted as saying, "It's a great Christmas present for our city."[2]
Following vandalism during the May 2020 George Floyd protests, it was removed to a city storage facility that September. Restoration costs were estimated at $200,000. It will likely be reinstalled before the statue's bi-centennial in 2029 so that it can be again displayed as a "gesture of friendship" that will last "forever."[3]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Louis XVI". LouisvilleKY.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
- ^ Glowicki, Matthew (September 3, 2020). "Everything to know about Louisville's most famous regift: The King Louis XVI statue". Louisville Courier Journal. Archived from the original on 2022-10-15. Retrieved 2022-10-15.
- ^ Staff, A. O. L. (2024-06-22). "Retro Louisville: King Louis XVI statue". www.aol.com. Retrieved 2024-07-14.
 | This Louisville-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a sculpture in the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |