The concept of

liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

has frequently been represented by

personification Personification is the representation of a thing or abstraction as a person, often as an embodiment or incarnation. In the arts, many things are commonly personified, including: places, especially cities, National personification, countries, an ...

s, often loosely shown as a female classical

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

. Examples include Marianne, the

national personification A national personification is an anthropomorphic personification of a state or the people(s) it inhabits. It may appear in political cartoons and propaganda. In the first personifications in the Western World, warrior deities or figures symboliz ...

of the

French Republic France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and its values of , and the female Liberty portrayed in artworks, on United States coins beginning in 1793, and many other depictions. These descend from images on ancient Roman coins of the Roman goddess

Libertas Libertas (Latin for 'liberty' or 'freedom', ) is the Roman goddess and personification of liberty. She became a politicised figure in the late republic. She sometimes also appeared on coins from the imperial period, such as Galba's "Freedom ...

and from various developments from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

onwards. The Dutch Maiden was among the first, re-introducing the cap of liberty on a liberty pole featured in many types of image, though not using the Phrygian cap style that became conventional. The 1886

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of French Thir ...

(''Liberty Enlightening the World'') by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi is a well-known example in art, a gift from France to the United States.

Ancient Rome

The

ancient Roman In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

was honored during the

second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

(218 to 201 BC) by a temple erected on the Aventine Hill in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

by the father of Tiberius Gracchus. In a highly political gesture, a temple for her was raised in 58 BC by Publius Clodius Pulcher on the site of Marcus Tullius Cicero's house after it had been razed. When depicted as a standing figure, on the reverse of coins, she usually holds out, but never wears, a , the soft cap that symbolised the granting of freedom to former slaves. She also carries a rod, which formed part of the ceremony for

manumission Manumission, or enfranchisement, is the act of freeing slaves by their owners. Different approaches to manumission were developed, each specific to the time and place of a particular society. Historian Verene Shepherd states that the most wi ...

. In the 18th century, the turned into the similar Phrygian cap carried on a pole by English-speaking "Liberty" figures, and then worn by Marianne and other 19th-century personifications, as the "cap of liberty". Libertas had been important under the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

, and was somewhat uncomfortably co-opted by the empire; it was not seen as an innate right, but as granted to some under Roman law. Her attribute of the pileus appeared on the Ides of March coin of the assassins of

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

, defenders of the Roman republic, between two daggers with the inscription "EID MAR" (''Eidibus Martiis'' – on the Ides of March).

Early modern period

The medieval republics, mostly in Italy, greatly valued their liberty, and often use the word, but produce very few direct personifications. One exception, showing just the cap of liberty between daggers, a copy of coins by the assassins of

, featured on a medal struck by Lorenzino de' Medici to commemorate his assassination of his cousin Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence in 1547. Liberty featured in

emblem book An emblem book is a book collecting emblems (allegorical illustrations) with accompanying explanatory text, typically morals or poems. This category of books was popular in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries. Emblem books are collection ...

s, usually with her cap; the most popular, the '' Iconologia'' of Cesare Ripa, showed the cap held on a pole by the 1611 edition. With the rise of

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

and new states, many nationalist personifications included a strong element of liberty, perhaps culminating in the ''

''. The long poem ''Liberty'' by the Scottish James Thomson (1734), is a lengthy

monologue In theatre, a monologue (also known as monolog in North American English) (in , from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts ...

spoken by the "Goddess of Liberty", "characterized as British Liberty", describing her travels through the ancient world, and then English and British history, before the resolution of the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...

of 1688 confirms her position there. Thomson also wrote the lyrics for '' Rule Britannia'', and the two personifications were often combined as a personified "British Liberty". A large monument, originally called the "Column of British Liberty", now usually just the "Column to Liberty", was begun in the 1750s on his Gibside estate outside Newcastle-on-Tyne by the hugely wealthy Sir George Bowes, reflecting his Whig politics. Set at the top of a steep hillock, the monument itself is taller than Nelson's Column in London, and topped by a bronze female figure, originally gilded, carrying a cap of liberty on a pole. In other images, she took the seated form already very familiar from the British copper coinage, where

Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...

had first appeared in 1672, with shield but carrying the cap on a rod as a liberty pole, rather than her usual trident. In the run up to the American War of Independence, this conflated figure of Britannia/Liberty was attractive to American colonists agitating for the full set of British civil rights, and from 1770 some American newspapers adopted her for their masthead. When war broke out, the Britannia element quickly disappeared, but a classical-looking Liberty still appealed, and was now sometimes just labelled "America". In the 1790s Columbia, who had been sometimes present in literature for some decades, emerged as a common name for this figure. Her position was cemented by the popular song '' Hail, Columbia'' (1798). By the time of the French Revolution the modern type of imagery was well-established, and the French figure acquired the name of Marianne from 1792. Unlike her predecessors, she normally wore the cap of Liberty on her head, rather than carrying it on a pole or lance. In 1793 the Notre Dame de Paris cathedral was turned into a " Temple of Reason" and, for a brief time, the Goddess of Liberty replaced the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

on several altars.James A. Herrick, ''The Making of the New Spirituality'', InterVarsity Press, 2004 , pp. 75–-76 The Great Seal of France, applied to the official copies of legislation, had a Marianne with Phrygian cap of liberty from 1792, until she was replaced the next year by a

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

after

Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in ...

. A standing Liberty, with fasces and cap on a pole, was on the seal of Napoleon's

French Consulate The Consulate () was the top-level government of the First French Republic from the fall of the French Directory, Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 9 November 1799 until the start of the First French Empire, French Empire on 18 May 1804. ...

, before being replaced by his head. Liberty returned to the seal with the

French Second Republic The French Second Republic ( or ), officially the French Republic (), was the second republican government of France. It existed from 1848 until its dissolution in 1852. Following the final defeat of Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle ...

in 1848, seated amid symbols of agriculture and industry, designed by Jacques-Jean Barre. She carries fasces on her lap, now wears a radiant crown with seven spikes or rays, and leans on a

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

. After a gap with the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

, a version of the 1848 design was used by the

French Third Republic The French Third Republic (, sometimes written as ) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940, after the Fall of France durin ...

and under subsequent republics to the present day. The radiant crown, never used in antiquity for Libertas (but for the sun god

Sol Invictus Sol Invictus (, "Invincible Sun" or "Unconquered Sun") was the official Solar deity, sun god of the late Roman Empire and a later version of the god Sol (Roman mythology), Sol. The emperor Aurelian revived his cult in 274 AD and promoted Sol Inv ...

and some later emperors), was adopted by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi for the ''Statue of Liberty''. This was conceived in the 1860s, under the French Second Republic, when Liberty no longer featured on the seal or in French official

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

. The Great Seal's rudder was another original borrowing from classical iconography. In Roman art it (called a gubernaculum) was the usual attribute of

Fortuna Fortuna (, equivalent to the Greek mythology, Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Religion in ancient Rome, Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular thr ...

, or "Lady Luck", representing her control of the changeable fortunes of life. As well as such dignified representations, all these figures very frequently figured in the

political cartoon A political cartoon, also known as an editorial cartoon, is a cartoon graphic with caricatures of public figures, expressing the artist's opinion. An artist who writes and draws such images is known as an editorial cartoonist. They typically co ...

s that were becoming extremely popular in all the countries concerned over this period. The

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

produced a particular outpouring of cartoons on all sides. In the 19th century various

s took on this form, some wearing the cap of liberty. The Dutch Maiden, accompanied by the Leo Belgicus became the official symbol of the

Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic (; ) was the Succession of states, successor state to the Dutch Republic, Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 after the Batavian Revolution and ended on 5 June 1806, with the acce ...

established after the French occupied the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Depictions in the United States

In the United States, "Liberty" is often depicted with five-pointed stars, as they appear on the American flag, usually held in a raised hand. Another hand may hold a

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

which points downward. Depictions which are familiar to Americans include the following: * The

(''Liberty Enlightening the World''), its

replicas A replica is an exact (usually 1:1 in scale) copy or remake of an object, made out of the same raw materials, whether a molecule, a work of art, or a commercial product. The term is also used for copies that closely resemble the original, without ...

, and its portrayal on many U.S.

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...

s and coins * Many denominations of American coins have depicted Liberty in both bust side-view and full-figure designs; see also the Liberty dollar, Seated Liberty dollar, Liberty dime, Walking Liberty half dollar, Indian Head cent, Morgan dollar, Silver Eagle, Gold Eagle, American Innovation dollar, and others * The flags of the States of New York and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

(along with various signs and public-owned items bearing the Seal of New Jersey) * On the dome of the U.S. Capitol as ''

Freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...

'' * On the dome of the Georgia State Capitol as '' Miss Freedom'' * On the dome of the Texas State Capitol * On the dome of the Wisconsin State Capitol as ''

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

'' * On the dome of the Allen County Courthouse in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...

* On the dome of the

Bergen County Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Hackensack, New Jersey Hackensack is the most populous municipality in and the county seat of Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

* Atop the Yorktown Victory Monument on the Yorktown Battlefield near

Yorktown, Virginia Yorktown is a town in York County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of York County, one of the eight original shires formed in Colony of Virginia, colonial Virginia in 1682. Yorktown's population was 195 as of the 2010 census, while ...

* On both Union and Confederate currency In the early decades of the 20th century, Liberty mostly displaced Columbia, who was widely used as the

of the US during the 19th century. File:20 Dollars gold coin of the United States of America.jpg, The goddess Liberty is portrayed on the high relief Double eagle (20 Dollars) coin of the United States of America, designed by

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculpture, sculptor of the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. Saint-Gaudens was born in Dublin to an Iris ...

. File:Liberty $50 Obverse.png, The obverse of the

American Gold Eagle The American Gold Eagle is an official gold bullion coin of the United States. Authorized under the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985, it was first released by the United States Mint in 1986. Because the term "eagle" also is the official United St ...

, a gold bullion coin in current production, designed by Saint-Gaudens File:Liberty_$1_Obverse.png, The obverse of the American Silver Eagle, a silver bullion coin in current production, from a design by Adolph A. Weinman File:1943D Mercury Dime obverse.jpg, A young Liberty, with winged cap, on the Obverse of the Winged Liberty Head dime, which became (incorrectly) known as the Mercury dime, designed by Weinman and issued in the US between 1916 and 1945 File:1879S Morgan Dollar NGC MS67plus Obverse.png, Liberty depicted wearing a Phrygian cap on the obverse of the Morgan silver dollar, designed by George T. Morgan File:1986 US Liberty Half Dollar Coin.tif, '' Liberty Enlightening the World'' depicted on the obverse of its 1986 100th anniversary Statue of Liberty commemorative half-dollar

Notes

References

* Higham, John (1990). "Indian Princess and Roman Goddess: The First Female Symbols of America", ''Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society''. 100: 50–51, JSTOR o
PDF
* Sear, David, ''Roman Coins and Their Values, Volume 2'', 46-48, 49-51, 2002, Spink & Son, Ltd, , 9781912667239
google books
* Warner, Marina, ''Monuments and Maidens: The Allegory of the Female Form'', 2000, University of California Press, , 9780520227330
Google Books

External links

Mackinac Island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liberty (Personification) American deities Roman goddesses Feminist spirituality Iconography Liberty symbols Mascots National personifications National symbols of the United States