''La Vela di Colombo'', or the ''Sail of Columbus'', is a monument located along the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway at Liberty State Park in

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

to America in 1492, the role of

Genoa, Italy Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

in the

Age of Discovery The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafarin ...

, and

Italian immigration The Italian diaspora is the large-scale emigration of Italians from Italy. There were two major Italian diasporas in Italian history. The first diaspora began around 1880, two decades after the Risorgimento, Unification of Italy, and ended in the ...

to the

Port of New York and New Jersey The Port of New York and New Jersey is the port district of the New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. It includes the system of navigable water ...

. The 6 meter (20 foot) tall bronze work weighing 240

hundredweight The hundredweight (abbreviation: cwt), formerly also known as the centum weight or quintal, is a British imperial and US customary unit of weight or mass. Its value differs between the US and British imperial systems. The two values are distingu ...

was designed by Italian sculptor Gino Gianetti. The plaza which creates the setting for the statue was designed by the RBA Group. The ''Sail of Columbus'' is set atop four bronze mooring posts mounted on a stone base in the shape of a ship. The waterfront side of the sail depicts scenes of the explorer's travels. The inland side includes a scene with Columbus at the helm of his ship, the '' Santa Maria''. The statue is a gift from the Italian government and the City of Genoa. It was originally transported to the United States in 1992, but a place to install it was not decided until 1998, when the National Italian-American Foundation and the

Columbus Citizens Foundation The Columbus Citizens Foundation is a non-profit organization in New York City committed to fostering an appreciation of Italian-American heritage and achievement. The Foundation, through a range of philanthropic and cultural activities, provides ...

dedicated the sculpture at its permanent location. A smaller version of the work can be found at

Genoa Cristoforo Colombo Airport Genoa Airport ( it, link=no, Aeroporto di Genova) also named Christopher Columbus Airport ("Aeroporto Cristoforo Colombo" in Italian) (), and commonly named ''Aeroporto di Genova-Sestri Ponente'' (Genoa-Sestri Ponente Airport), after the city ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, Italy. A separate stone plaque at the foot of the sculpture entitled ''Bridge of Nations'' is inscribed: A BRIDGE TO A NEW WORLD
FOUNDED BY THE IMAGINATION OF A DREAMER
FORGED WITH COURAGE - TRAVERSED BY GREATNESS
AN EVERLASTING CONNECTION BETWEEN OUR NATIONS
ITALY AND AMERICA - BRETHREN TOGETHER
MAY WE FOREVER SAIL

References

External links

The Bridge of Nations Historical MarkerGino Giannetti - ''Monumento a Colombo''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vela di Columbo, La Italian-American culture in New Jersey Monuments and memorials in New Jersey Outdoor sculptures in New Jersey Public art in Jersey City, New Jersey Sculptures in New Jersey Monuments and memorials to Christopher Columbus Sculptures of ships Sculptures of birds in the United States Sculptures of horses Sculptures of men in New Jersey Animal sculptures in New Jersey

See also

References

External links