page_title: Conservation-restoration of the Statue of Liberty
section_title: Pre-restoration documentation efforts
hierarchical_section_title: Conservation-restoration of the Statue of Liberty / Pre-restoration documentation efforts
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Freiheitsstatue von Liberty Island aus gesehen English: View of the Statue of Liberty from Liberty Island This &#32;image&#32;was created with Hugin.
context_page_description: A centennial conservation-restoration of the Statue of Liberty occurred between 1984 and 1986. The Statue of Liberty, by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, is a colossal artwork on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, and is a part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. Much of the restoration effort was based on unprecedented restorative methods, as metallurgical repair work on such a large scale had never been attempted. Many scientists, engineers, government organizations, and professional consultants evaluated and dealt with the various problems and tasks facing the restoration effort.
  The restored statue was reopened during Liberty Weekend, its 100-year anniversary celebration held July 3–6, 1986.
context_section_description: The preparations for the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty began in 1979. Formed by the National Park Service (NPS), the custodians of the statue since 1933, to investigate possible development alternatives[incomplete sentence]. A report titled "Analysis of Alternatives", published in December 1980, proposed measures to remedy the certain conditions confronting visitors to the Statue of Liberty, such as the long lines and waiting time to enter the crown of the statue. The proposed measures included the instatement of systems for numbered ticketing and early warnings that would allow visitors to estimate any possible waiting times and to be conveniently advised if and when to visit or enter the statue. The report also discussed ways to streamline ferry access both to and from Liberty Island and Ellis Island. The early report did not address the ever-deteriorating physical condition of the statue, which was already readily apparent.
  The French American Committee for the Restoration of the Statue of Liberty was formed in May 1981. The Department of the Interior (of which the National Park Service is a bureau) later that month, on May 26, agreed to a working relationship with the Committee. In June 1981, the Committee was incorporated as a non-profit foundation licensed by the State of New York to raise funds for the restoration effort. The Committee hired four French consultants said to have considerable expertise in their respective fields: an architect-engineer, a metals expert, a structural engineer and a mechanical engineer who were asked to compose a technical report on the physical condition of the statue. The French consultants visited Liberty Island in May, June, October and December 1981, before presenting a preliminary white paper to the National Park Service on the seventeenth of December in Washington, D.C., titled "French Technical Report on Restoring the Statue of Liberty".
  The report, written with the assistance of a regional historical architect from the NPS, was an attempt to identify and address the apparent problems associated with the statue. In the report, the consultants took note of what they saw to be the most serious problem affecting the statue: that two predominant sections, the torch-bearing arm and the rest platform at the head level, had corroded significantly. The report also alluded to the corroded girders toward the top of the pedestal and the bottom of the central pylon. The report also discussed the serious structural problems associated with the long-ago deteriorated insulating layer between the copper sheet of the statue and the iron bands of the structural armature, as it had caused the iron bands to corrode. Alterations over the intervening years (1887–1916) to the torch had created such irreversible damage to the integral stability of that segment, that it was advised in the report that the torch be replaced. In order to more thoroughly assess possible damage that may be hidden beneath the layers of paint on the central pylon, the French consultants also suggested that the layers of paint covering it be removed. Two alternative proposals for modernizing the stairway within the statue were also proposed. From these preliminary observations, a number of preservation and replacement priorities were made. The white paper was further assessed and scrutinized by the NPS and other officials at the Department of the Interior in the nation's capital on March 5, 1982. The director of the NPS was impressed by the report, but also concerned about the future prospects of the Committee's fund raising efforts.
  Shortly thereafter, the Secretary of the Department of the Interior announced in May 1982 the creation of a 21-member Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Centennial Commission (better known as the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation) which would act as an "umbrella group" overseeing the French American Committee and the Ellis Island Restoration Commission. The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation would try to privately raise funds for the restoration efforts. A report prepa
caption: View of the Statue of Liberty from Liberty Island (2008)
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