In commemoration of the Declaration of Independence, it’s worth exploring the relationship between France and the United States and how that relationship resulted in the design and construction of one of the Unite States’ most iconic symbols.  

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France supported the efforts of the American colonists to declare their independence from Great Britain. In school, we learned how the Marquis de La Fayette joined George Washington’s Continental Army and helped defeat the British at the Battle of Yorktown. Nearly 100 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed, the Frenchman Édouard de Laboulaye proposed a commemorative gift from France to the United States to mark the occasion and to reaffirm the close ties between the two nations. Sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi developed the design and engineer Gustav Eiffel, for whom the Eiffel Tower is named, provided the framework for the sculpture. This collaborative effort on behalf of the French resulted in one of the most well-known symbols of peace and cooperation gifted from one country to another: the Statue of Liberty.

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The Statue of Liberty, located in New York Harbor, is but one of various other statues. Paris is home to several similar statues that symbolize the strong and enduring ties between the United States and France. Some, like the one located at Île aux Cygnes, were gifted from the United States to France, others, mark the location of tragic events.

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Check out the list below of select Statues of Liberty in Paris.

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• Île aux Cygnes: A gift from the United States to France, this statue is located in the Seine near the Pont de Grenelle. The statue provides excellent photo opportunities with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

• Musée d’Orsay: The grand central aisle of the ground floor of the Musée d’Orsay houses Bartholdi’s scale model of the sculpture that eventually was installed in New York Harbor.

• Musée des Arts et Métiers: The original 1878 plaster model used to construct the Statue of Liberty is located at this museum dedicated to invention and technology.

• Jardin du Luxembourg: A bronze replica of Bartholdi’s scale model (which currently is located at the Musée d’Orsay) is located in the Jardin du Luxembourg.

• Flame of Liberty (Pont de l’Alma): The full-size Flame of Liberty was presented to the city of Paris by the International Herald Tribune in 1989 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of publishing an English daily newspaper in Paris. The flame subsequently has become a memorial to Princess Diana who died in the tunnel under the Pont de l’Alma in 1987. ​