10 World Famous Landmarks That Were Almost Destroyed

9. The Statue Of Liberty Was Almost Lost At Sea

Whenever someone visits New York they want to see all the famous landmarks it has to offer: the Empire State Building, Central Park - and, of course, the Statue of Liberty. Although the Statue of Liberty was a gift from France to the USA to celebrate their birth as the world's first modern democracy, it was originally supposed to be given to Egypt as a landmark during the World's Fair in the 1860s - but artist Auguste Bartholdi then decided to send it across the Pond. First displayed as just the torch-bearing arm of the statue, it was put up originally not in New York but at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, then it was moved to Madison Square Park in Manhattan between 1876 and 1882. The remaining 299 pieces of the statue were constructed in France before being shipped across in 241 crates and then pieced together on a huge base on Bedloe's Island (now Liberty Island) during the 1880s. Worryingly, however, the 300 individual pieces were almost lost during rough seas on the voyage across the Atlantic - and then they were kept hidden away in storage for more than a year once they had actually reached the USA. In fact, the only reason the statue was eventually built was because anyone who donated money to the fund would have their name printed in the New York World newspaper. Quite incredible really, considering how iconic it has become since.