Goldener Reiter
The Goldener Reiter is an equestrian statue of Elector Friedrich August I of Saxony, known as Augustus the Strong, on Neustädter Markt in Dresden.
Jürgen Striewski Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
What it is
Goldener Reiter means Golden Rider. It stands in the Neustadt, at the foot of the Augustus Bridge.
It was made in 1732–1734 after designs by the court sculptor Jean Joseph Vinache; the art smith Ludwig Wiedemann beat it out of copper.
History
It was unveiled on 26 November 1736. The architect Zacharias Longuelune designed the pedestal. The first restoration was in 1884, under the architect Konstantin Lipsius.
In autumn 2001 the statue was taken down because rust in its internal iron support endangered its stability. Water and condensation inside had caused the rust. It was restored and put back by 2003. The Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt part-funded the restoration.
The gilding
The figure was originally fire-gilded. The present gilding is leaf gold applied in oil, about 500 grams of it, laid in the 2001–03 restoration.