SPIRIT OF AMERICA GUITAR
I've been building guitars the better part of my life, and I don't think I've ever built anything that has this much meaning.
Michael McGuireDirector of Operations, Gibson Guitar Custom Shop
The Sound of Freedom
“THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA” LES PAUL GUITAR was created at the request of Gold Leaf Corporation, under an exclusive agreement with The Statue of Liberty–Ellis Island Foundation, Inc., at Gibson’s Custom & Historic Shop in Nashville, Tennessee to celebrate freedom.
This special guitar has been meticulously hand-crafted by Gibson Master Luthiers from wood removed and preserved from the historic Registry Building at Ellis Island and inlaid with copper removed during the centennial restoration of the Statue of Liberty.
Through the universal language of music, this beautiful work of instrumental art will always serve to inspire the unifying message of Liberty & Freedom in America and throughout the World.
The impressive one-of-a-kind display has also been created by Gibson from an armature bar removed and preserved from the Statue of Liberty. Designed by Gustave Eiffel, this armature ring completely encircles and cradles this special guitar in a “Framework of Freedom”.
This custom Les Paul Guitar is a true artifact of American History and is the only guitar in the world created from Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island artifacts; it is truly a National Treasure.
SPIRIT OF AMERICA
• Created entirely from wood preserved from the Historic Registry Building of Ellis Island
• Inlaid with Statue of Liberty Copper which was cut from copper saddles, then hand-engraved and hammered carefully so as to leave all historical marks and numbers
• Control knobs, switch, and strap posts are all created from bolts removed from an armature bar section preserved from the Statue of Liberty
• All hardware and Humbucker pick-ups are plated in Statue of Liberty copper
• The stain on the fingerboard was created by combining rusty nails taken from the Ellis Island wood in a solution unique to Gibson
• This guitar is the only one in the world and bears the serial identity