Bartholdi's Statues in Colmar (Self Guided), Colmar

Bartholdi Monument is a tribute to the sculptor Auguste Bartholdi. Bartholdi was the artist who created the Statue of Liberty and the Lion of Belfort. He is considered to be one of Colmar's most famous artists.

The monument dedicated to Bartholdi was crafted in 1907 by Hubert Louis Noel and Auguste Rubin, former pupils of the master. The sculpture shows the bronze figure of Bartholdi standing atop a pink granite base.

Bartholdi Monument is located in the Water Tower Park (Parc Du Chateau D'eau). The park is well known for its rose garden with 38 varieties of shrubs. There are also some of the oldest trees in Colmar and several walking paths that take visitors past swamp cypress and redwoods. Monument Bartholdi is located at the park's south entrance.

The park is open 24 hours. Visitors taking an evening walking tour of the park will find ample lighting to view Bartholdi Monument.

Bruat Fountain is a monument dedicated to Admiral Armand Joseph Bruat, crafted by Auguste Bartholdi in 1864. It is located in the Field of Mars Park (Parc du Champ de Mars).

The monument was requested by Colmar's mayor, Henri de Peyerimhoff de Fontenelle. After Admiral Bruat's death at sea in 1855, the mayor asked for a statue in the Admiral's likeness. The sculpture first stood atop a base amid a fountain with water spewing from the mouths of four sea monsters.

In 1940, during the Second World War, the fountain was destroyed by the Germans. In 1958, the bronze statue was restored and placed on a new fountain built by sculptor Choain and architect Porte. The restoration swapped the four sea monsters for allegorical figures representing the areas of the world where Bruat traveled.

The sandstone heads from the original fountain are kept at the Bartholdi Museum. The statue has been listed as a historical monument since 1946.

Roesselmann Fountain is an ornate, white stone fountain topped with a statue of the public judge Jean Roesselmann. The sculpture was created in 1888 by artist Auguste Bartholdi famous for the Statue of Liberty.

Roesselmann is considered the first hero of Colmar. He passed away while defending Colmar and the municipal liberties against the troops and the covetousness of the Bishop of Strasbourg.

Auguste Bartholdi used Hercule de Peyerimhoff, then mayor of Colmar, to provide the character traits for the Roesselmann statue. Like Roesselmann, Hoff participated in the defense of Colmar and refused to submit to German rule.

The statue of Roesselmann stands on a base of four columns topped with a pedestal. Water spews from the open mouths of fish and other creatures that adorn the uppermost portion of the pedestal. The fountain is illuminated at night and is viewable 24 hours.

The statue of the Little Winemaker (Statue du Petit Vigneron), sometimes called the Statue of the Little Winemaker or the Little Alsacien Winemaker, is one of the early statues crafted by Auguste Bartholdi. The fountain is located on the southwestern corner of the Covered Market (Marche Couvert).

The statue shows a bronze figure of a boy holding a vessel above his head. He sits with one leg draped over the other while a bronze dog waits at his feet. Beneath the statue is a pedestal with a single spout and a cracked, circular fountain.

The original statue, built in 1869, can be found inside the Bartholdi Museum in Colmar. The sculpture on display atop the fountain is one of two copies made from the original. A second copy became a gift to Colmar's American sister city, Princeton, New Jersey.

Old Custom House Square (Place de l'Ancienne Douane) is a notable square in Colmar, surrounded by historic buildings that have mostly been converted into restaurants and shops. The most remarkable building is the Old Custom House.

The Old Custom House, also known as Koïfhus, is a Gothic-style building with typical medieval Colmar charm that now houses little shops, a restaurant, and cultural events. Built in 1489, it served as a customs house overseeing the import and export and collecting taxes. The building's renovation in the late 19th century added some Renaissance touches. It was named a historical monument by the French Ministry of Culture in 1930.

The Old Custom House Square houses one of Colmar's most beautiful fountains, with a sculpture originally crafted by Auguste Bartholdi. The statue of Lazarus Schwendi stands atop Schwendi Fountain. Schwendi, a lord of Hohlandsburg, can be seen waving a grapevine while a series of cannons release water into the fountain below.

According to a legend, Lazarus Schwendi was war chief between 1564 and 1568 under the emperor Maximilian II and fought against the Turks in Hungary. He had brought a vine plant from his war campaigns in Hungary. The grape variety, called Tokay, became one of Alsace's most famous wines. Auguste Bartholdi was inspired by this legend and decided to represent Lazarus Schwendi with a vine stock in his hand.

The original statue of Lazarus Schwendi, destroyed during the Second World War, was rebuilt using Bartholdi's original models after the war ended.

Bartholdi Museum is an art museum dedicated to Auguste Bartholdi, the most famous artist of Alsace of the 19th century, born in Colmar. The museum resides in the birthplace of the sculptor, known for his many iconic pieces, including the Statue of Liberty.

The museum features numerous works by Bartholdi. It also houses models for some of his famous monuments. Some of these include the statue of Jean Roesselmann found on the Roesselmann fountain, the sculpture of General Rapp, and the statue of Admiral Bruat found at Fontaine Bruat.

Models for two of Bartholdi's most famous works are found at the museum. The models and sketches of the Statue of Liberty and the Lion of Belfort show the vision and the process of building these iconic works of art.

The museum building and its courtyard represent works of art as well. The courtyard is home to the Statue of the Great Supporters of the World (Statue des Grands Soutuens du Monde). The museum's doors, from the 17th century, were registered as historical monuments in 1926.

Anton Burger was a shopkeeper in the city of Colmar. He was born in 1579. He inherited his father's house and had it demolished in 1609. He built his own house on the property, which became the famous "House of the Heads."

The Maison des Tetes (House of Heads), designed by architect Albert Schmidt, features the German Renaissance style. The facade of the building shows two square floors with strips and three levels on the high gable. An oriel covers two stories in the center. It has an openwork stone railing adorned with bifurcated figures. The building gets its name from the 106 sculpted heads on the oriel and mullions of the windows.

Posing on the gable is the pewter statue of an Alsation cooper holding a wine bottle in his left hand and a stein in his right. Created by painter and sculptor Auguste Bartholdi in 1902, the statue marks the setting up of the Colmar Wine Exchange. Anton Burger lived in his house until he fled the Catholic Counter-Reformation. He settled in Basel in 1698, and he died there.

Burger's heirs sold the house in 1698. The building passed through the hands of several owners and was acquired by the Wine Exchange. The house became a restaurant and social watering hole since 1898.

Today the historical building houses a 5-star hotel and a Michelin-starred gourmet restaurant.

Auguste Bartholdi, the most notable artist of Alsace of the 19th century, sculpted the famous Statue of Liberty as a gift from the French to the United States. The nearly 40-foot-high replica was erected in 2004 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Bartholdi's death.

Unlike the original, the Statue of Liberty is not made of copper that has been patinated into a greenish hue. It is made of a composite of materials to resemble its inspiration.

The Statue of Liberty was a task taken on by four sculptors and artists: Guillaume Roche, Pascal Bigel, Philippe Le Merrer, and Jean Christophe Mironneau. It was molded in terracotta and enlarged with pale green-tinted clay.

The statue, formally called "Liberty Enlightening the World," is installed at the northern entrance to Colmar, near the Airport along Strasbourg road. This location was chosen because it is the primary spot that welcomes visitors to the city.