Giuseppe Verdi Monument (San Francisco)

The Giuseppe Verdi Monument is defined by a gold-gilded bronze bust of the composer, which sits atop a massive granite pedestal rising nearly twenty-four feet into the air. Crafted by the Milanese sculptor Orazio Grossoni, the monument features a base decorated with bronze figures representing the muses of love, tragedy, joy, and sorrow. The entire structure, which weighs fifty-two tons, was constructed in Italy using red and black granite from Baveno, overlooking Lake Maggiore.