what does the base of the statue of liberty look like
Statue of Liberty
Hunt 's pedestal design contains elements of classical architecture , including Doric portals , as well as some elements influenced by Aztec architecture . The large mass is fragmented with architectural detail , in order to focus attention on the statue . In form , it is a truncated pyramid , 62 feet ( 19 m ) square at the base and 39.4 feet ( 12.0 m ) at the top . The four sides are identical in appearance . Above the door on each side , there are ten disks upon which Bartholdi proposed to place the coats of arms of the states ( between 1876 and 1889 , there were 38 U.S. states ) , although this was not done . Above that , a balcony was placed on each side , framed by pillars . Bartholdi placed an observation platform near the top of the pedestal , above which the statue itself rises . According to author Louis Auchincloss , the pedestal `` craggily evokes the power of an ancient Europe over which rises the dominating figure of the Statue of Liberty '' . The committee hired former army General Charles Pomeroy Stone to oversee the construction work . Construction on the 15 - foot - deep ( 4.6 m ) foundation began in 1883 , and the pedestal 's cornerstone was laid in 1884 . In Hunt 's original conception , the pedestal was to have been made of solid granite . Financial concerns again forced him to revise his plans ; the final design called for poured concrete walls , up to 20 feet ( 6.1 m ) thick , faced with granite blocks . This Stony Creek granite came from the Beattie Quarry in Branford , Connecticut . The concrete mass was the largest poured to that time . 
Hunt 's pedestal design contains elements of classical architecture , including Doric portals , as well as some elements influenced by Aztec architecture . The large mass is fragmented with architectural detail , in order to focus attention on the statue . In form , it is a truncated pyramid , 62 feet ( 19 m ) square at the base and 39.4 feet ( 12.0 m ) at the top . The four sides are identical in appearance . Above the door on each side , there are ten disks upon which Bartholdi proposed to place the coats of arms of the states ( between 1876 and 1889 , there were 38 U.S. states ) , although this was not done . Above that , a balcony was placed on each side , framed by pillars . Bartholdi placed an observation platform near the top of the pedestal , above which the statue itself rises . According to author Louis Auchincloss , the pedestal `` craggily evokes the power of an ancient Europe over which rises the dominating figure of the Statue of Liberty '' . The committee hired former army General Charles Pomeroy Stone to oversee the construction work . Construction on the 15 - foot - deep ( 4.6 m ) foundation began in 1883 , and the pedestal 's cornerstone was laid in 1884 . In Hunt 's original conception , the pedestal was to have been made of solid granite . Financial concerns again forced him to revise his plans ; the final design called for poured concrete walls , up to 20 feet ( 6.1 m ) thick , faced with granite blocks . This Stony Creek granite came from the Beattie Quarry in Branford , Connecticut . The concrete mass was the largest poured to that time .
In form, it is a truncated pyramid, 62 feet square at the base and 39.4 feet at the top.  The four sides are identical in appearance.   Above that, a balcony was placed on each side framed by pillars.  An observation platform near the top of the pedestal is placed above which the statue itself rises.
In form , it is a truncated pyramid , 62 feet ( 19 m ) square at the base and 39.4 feet ( 12.0 m ) at the top . The four sides are identical in appearance . Above that , a balcony was placed on each side , framed by pillars . Bartholdi placed an observation platform near the top of the pedestal , above which the statue itself rises .