If you look at Lady Liberty today, she’s got that iconic, minty-green seafoam glow. It’s the color of postcards and New York City souvenirs. But if you had stood on a boat in New York Harbor back in 1886, you wouldn't have seen green at all. You would have seen a giant, shimmering penny.
When people ask what material is the Statue of Liberty made of, they usually expect a list of heavy stones or maybe some kind of weird 19th-century plastic. Nope. It’s mostly air, held together by a very thin skin of copper. Honestly, that skin is surprisingly thin. We’re talking about 2.4 millimeters, which is roughly the thickness of two pennies pressed together. It's wild to think that something so massive and imposing is actually as delicate as a shell.
The Copper Skin and the Chemistry of Oxidation
The outer layer is pure copper. When Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was designing the thing, he chose copper because it was relatively light compared to cast bronze and easier to hammer into complex shapes. He used a technique called repoussé. Basically, workers hammered the copper sheets into wooden molds from the inside out.
But why is it green now?
Science. Specifically, a process called patination. When copper is exposed to the elements—salty sea air, rain, and New York pollution—it goes through a series of chemical reactions. It didn't happen overnight. For the first few years, the statue turned a dull chocolate brown. By 1906, the oxidation had reached that final stage where a green "skin" or patina covered the whole thing.
Congress actually got worried about it. Back in the early 1900s, they actually considered painting the statue because they thought the green meant it was rotting or corroding away. Luckily, the Army Corps of Engineers stepped in and explained that the patina actually protects the copper underneath. It’s like a natural suit of armor. If you were to scrub that green off today, you’d actually be damaging the statue's longevity.
What’s Under the Hood? The Iron Skeleton
You can’t have 62,000 pounds of copper just floating in the air. It needs a spine.
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Originally, the internal support system was designed by Gustave Eiffel. Yes, that Eiffel. Before he built his famous tower in Paris, he was the engineering brains behind Lady Liberty. He realized that a rigid frame would snap under the intense winds of the harbor. So, he built a massive iron pylon—a central mast—and attached a flexible skeletal framework to it.
This was revolutionary for the time. The copper skin isn't actually bolted directly to the frame. Instead, it’s held by thousands of copper saddles and iron "ribs." This allows the statue to breathe. Or, more accurately, to sway. When the wind kicks up in the harbor, the Statue of Liberty can sway about three inches, and the torch can move five or six. If it were rigid, the copper would buckle and tear.
The 1980s Overhaul and the Stainless Steel Switch
By the 1980s, the statue was in rough shape. A century of "galvanic corrosion" had taken its toll. This happens when two different metals—in this case, iron and copper—touch each other in a moist, salty environment. They basically create a tiny battery that eats the metal away.
During the massive restoration for the 1986 centennial, workers realized the iron ribs were toast. They replaced almost all of them with stainless steel. Specifically, they used 316L stainless steel, which is incredibly resistant to salt corrosion. So, if you’re asking what material is the Statue of Liberty made of today, the answer is a bit of a hybrid: 19th-century copper on the outside, 20th-century stainless steel on the inside.
The Foundation: Concrete and Granite
Below the hem of her robes sits the pedestal. This is where the weight really lives.
The pedestal is made of poured concrete, faced with granite blocks. At the time it was finished, that concrete mass was the largest single move of its kind in the world. The granite comes from Beattie Island in Connecticut. It’s a very specific type of stone chosen for its durability.
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The total weight is staggering:
- Copper: 62,000 lbs (31 tons)
- Steel/Iron: 250,000 lbs (125 tons)
- Concrete Foundation: 54 million lbs (27,000 tons)
It’s an upside-down weight distribution. All the heavy lifting is done underground so that the copper "curtain wall" can look like it’s floating over the water.
The Torch: A Golden Exception
One part of the statue isn't copper or green. The flame.
The original 1886 torch was actually made of copper and had windows cut into it so it could be lit from the inside. It leaked. Constantly. By the 1980s, it was beyond repair. The restoration team replaced the entire torch with a new one that followed Bartholdi's original sketches more closely.
The new flame is covered in 24k gold leaf. Gold doesn't tarnish or turn green. It reflects the sun during the day and the floodlights at night, giving that literal "enlightenment" vibe that the statue is supposed to represent.
Misconceptions About the Material
A lot of people think the statue is solid. Like a giant bronze casting. If it were solid, it would have collapsed the pedestal into the earth a long time ago.
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Others think there’s wood in there. There isn't. Not anymore. There were wooden forms used during the construction in France, but the final product is strictly metal and stone.
There's also a persistent rumor that the copper came from a specific mine in Norway (Visnes). While it’s a popular theory and there's some evidence pointing that way, historical records from the 1880s are surprisingly messy. We know it’s high-quality copper, but the exact "birthplace" of the ore is still debated among historians.
How to See the Materials Up Close
If you actually want to see the "guts" of the statue, you have to get a pedestal ticket. Walking up inside the pedestal allows you to look up into the interior. You can see the lattice of the stainless steel skeleton and the back of the copper sheets. You’ll notice the hundreds of tiny rivets that hold the "skin" together.
It’s a different perspective. From the outside, she’s a goddess. From the inside, she’s an industrial masterpiece.
Actionable Insights for Visitors
- Look for the seams: When you are at the base, look closely at the folds of the robes. You can see where the individual copper sheets were joined.
- Check the museum: The original leaky torch is now housed in the Statue of Liberty Museum on the island. It’s the best way to see the 1886 copper up close without the gold leaf.
- Observe the color variation: If you look at the statue during a sunset, you’ll notice the green isn't uniform. The side facing the saltier winds of the ocean often has a slightly different hue than the "sheltered" side.
- Touch the granite: The pedestal granite is incredibly coarse. It was designed to withstand the harsh Atlantic winters and hasn't moved an inch in nearly 140 years.
The material of the Statue of Liberty is a testament to 19th-century ambition and 20th-century preservation. It’s a thin, oxidized shell of French copper supported by an American heart of steel and concrete.
Plan your visit with the materials in mind. 1. Book ferry tickets only through Statue City Cruises (the only official provider).
2. Get a "Pedestal" or "Crown" ticket months in advance if you want to see the internal steel structure.
3. Visit the Museum first to understand the repoussé process before you look at the actual statue.