Statue of Francis Scott Key (San Francisco)

The Francis Scott Key monument is a sprawling travertine structure topped by a statue of Columbia and four eagles, which once featured a seated bronze figure of the songwriter who penned the national anthem. Commissioned by San Francisco businessman James Lick, who donated sixty thousand dollars for the project, the monument was executed by sculptor William Wetmore Story in Rome between eighteen eighty-five and eighteen eighty-seven. It traveled one hundred and eighty-seven days by sea to reach San Francisco, where it was unveiled on July fourth, eighteen eighty-eight.