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Electra, "The Divinity of Light", is a 23-foot gilded bronze figure by New York sculptor Edward Field Sanford Jr., raised on 10 May 1926 at the peak of the Alabama Power Company General Office Building at 600 18th Street North in downtown Birmingham, Alabama.
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Electra
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Site-level location · 33.5150° N, 86.8067° W
FIELD GUIDE
The story
A gilded bronze goddess has crowned an electric company's headquarters in downtown Birmingham since 1926, and she nearly lost the spot to an electric sign. Alabama Power had planned a large electric sign for the peak of its new General Office Building. Architect William T. Warren argued instead for a statue that "would be a thing of beauty to be looked at and enjoyed over and over again", and, according to Alabama News Center, the board agreed unanimously.
New York sculptor Edward Field Sanford Jr. made "The Divinity of Light", a nude, gilded bronze figure 23 feet tall, holding lightning bolts in her hands with lightning projecting from her hair. Alabama News Center reports that she was anchored on the roof peak on 10 May 1926 "after much difficulty". Sanford said in 1925 that he intended a symbol of "the state of Alabama rising triumphantly in her electrical progress". The formal title gradually gave way to "Electra", and she soon became "Miss Electra". Sanford also designed the three eight-foot figures of Power, Light and Heat above the building's entrance.
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The 23-foot bronze stands on the roof peak of Alabama Power's headquarters, a working office building. Alabama Power reported in November 2024 that its free "For the Service of Alabama" exhibit inside, with a seven-foot scale model of Electra, was open to visitors who sign in.
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The statue is on the roof of the Alabama Power General Office Building, 600 18th Street North, downtown Birmingham. It is a working company headquarters. Alabama Power's November 2024 announcement said the free exhibit inside was open to visitors who sign in at the security desk.
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