The newly regilded sculptures at the east end of the bridge were covered in 23.75-karat gold leaf as part of a $5.1 million restoration project.
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Restored Arlington Memorial Bridge statues draw mixed reactions
Drivers and walkers on Arlington Memorial Bridge had a much brighter view Thursday as one of the bridge’s massive statues emerged from behind scaffolding.
The newly regilded sculptures at the east end of the bridge were covered in 23.75-karat gold leaf as part of a $5.1 million restoration project under President Donald Trump’s “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Again” initiative.
The statues, known as the Arts of War and the Arts of Peace, were created by sculptor Leo Friedlander.
Italy gave them to the U.S. in 1951 as a thank you for help in rebuilding the country after World War II.
Each statue group is 16 feet long, 19 feet high, 8 feet wide and weighs about 80,000 pounds.
They are made of bronze and were originally surfaced in gold. They have been regilded during major maintenance projects, including work in the 1970s.
To those who saw them Thursday, the fresh gold finish was a dramatic change.
“I don’t remember them being this shiny, this gaudy,” said Stephen Francis, who has lived in the D.C. area off and on for over 50 years. “I think there’s a better use for the funds than polishing up these horses.”
“Tacky. It looks like Home Depot gold spray paint,” Karen, a Fort Washington, Maryland, resident said.
Steven Davis, a D.C. resident, said it “looks a little over the top for my taste,” but he believed the work was well meant.
“They’ve done some great stuff for the city. I think some stuff has been a swing and miss. This one, I thought they looked great before. There was a lot of history behind it,” he said.
Some, seeing the statues for the first time in their newly restored state, were more impressed.
“I was walking on the backside of the (Lincoln) Memorial, and I was just like, ‘Whoa, what is that?’” Amy, a visitor from Topeka, Kansas, said.
She and her daughter Gio took a pedicab to get a better view.
“They look really nice. They’re super shiny, and those statues are beautiful,” Gio said.
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