LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – During the first night of protests in downtown Louisville, a protester broke the hand off of Louisville’s King Louis XVI statue, and now many are asking questions about it.
Here are a few facts about King Louis XVI (16th):
- The Carrara marbled sculpture was sculpted in 1829 for the king’s daughter Marie Therese, the queen dowager of France.
- The Second French Revolution endangered the statue. It was placed at a military base for protection, then made its way to Montpellier University and finally ending up in the municipal archives’ storage basement.
- Officials discovered the statue with a damaged arm in 1899 and was in disrepair.
- It remained in storage until officials decided to give it to Louisville in 1966.
- The statue took a 7-month journey from Montpellier to Louisville.
- It was presented as a gift to the City of Louisville on July 17, 1967 to then Republican Mayor Kenneth Schmeid.
- The statue is located at 6th and Jefferson in front of Louisville Metro Hall.
- The statue weighs 9-tons and it’s 12-feet high.
In 1792, King Louis XVI was convicted of conspiracy with foreign powers and sentenced to death by the French National Convention, He was executed by guillotine in the Place de la Revolution in Paris, according to Hitstory.com.
PHOTOS | King Louis XVI damaged during protests in downtown Louisville
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