Île aux Cygnes

Île aux Cygnes

Île aux Cygnes from the top of the Eiffel Tower. The Statue of Liberty replica is at the far end.
Location within Paris
Geography
Location	Paris, France
Coordinates
Area
Highest elevation	32 m (105 ft)
Country
France
Demographics
Population	0

Île aux Cygnes (French pronunciation: ​[il o siɲ]; English: Isle of the Swans) is a small artificial island on the river Seine in Paris, France, located in the 15th and 16th arrondissement. It was created in 1827 to protect the port of Grenelle. It should not be confused with an earlier Île des Cygnes that was attached to the Champ de Mars in the late 18th century.

The narrow island is 850 metres (2,789 ft) long and 11 metres (36 ft) at its widest point, and is the third-largest island in Paris. A tree-lined walkway, named L'Allée des Cygnes (Path of Swans), runs the length of the island. Since 2012, there has been a public workout space with bicycles and a climbing wall underneath the Pont de Grenelle, close to the Statue of Liberty replica.

The island is crossed by three bridges: the Pont de Grenelle, the Pont Rouelle and the Pont de Bir-Hakeim. It is served by the Passy and Bir-Hakeim Métro stations.

Statue of Liberty replica

The replica of the Statue of Liberty on the Île aux Cygnes

A notable feature is a quarter scale replica of the Statue of Liberty, 22 metres tall and facing west in the direction of its larger sibling in New York City.

Inaugurated by President Marie François Sadi Carnot on 4 July 1889, nearly three years after its US counterpart, it was given to the city of Paris by the Parisian community in America to mark the centennial of the French Revolution.

Plaque

The statue originally faced east, toward the Eiffel Tower, but it was turned west in 1937 for the world's fair hosted in Paris that year. At its base is a commemorative plaque, and the tablet in its left hand bears the inscription IV Juillet 1776 = XIV Juillet 1789, recognizing the American Independence Day and the French Bastille Day.

In 1998, on the occasion of the "Year of France in Japan", the 14-ton statue was transported to Japan and displayed on Odaiba, an artificial island in Tokyo Bay, before returning to Paris the following year.

A smaller statue is located in the Musée d'Orsay, and another can be seen at the Musée des Arts et Métiers.