Golden Donald Trump statue being held hostage until Ohio-based sculptor receives full payment

A 15-foot-tall bronze statue—gilded in gold leaf—of Donald Trump is currently being held under metaphorical lock and key until the sculptor, Alan Cottrill, receives full payment for the commission.

The $300,000 golden sculpture, depicting Trump with his fist raised post-assassination attempt in July 2024, was commissioned by a cryptocurrency group in August 2024 as a tribute to Trump and finished back in January; but three months later, the sculpture still remains in Ohio with Cottrill. After the group used images of the statue to sell their memecoin, $PATRIOT, Cottrill deemed them in violation of his intellectual property rights and now awaits the remaining $150,000 they agreed on for the rights to the statue, according to a New York Times article. 

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

This isn’t Cottrill’s first time depicting famous figures. The prolific sculptor based out of Zanesville has created life-sized bronze statues of past presidents, including George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan, according to his website. He’s also well known for his bronze statue of Thomas Edison, currently housed in the U.S. Capitol. And you may have come across his works locally. The Woody Hayes and Jesse Owens sculptures on Ohio State’s campus; or the life-sized bronze depiction of Jack and Suzi Hanna with a penguin, cheetah, and monkey at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, for some examples. 

Cottrill’s sculpture studio & gallery, located at 110 S. Sixth St. in Zanesville, also boasts “the world’s largest bronze sculpture exhibition of any living sculptor’s work,” with more than 300 bronze and tomb sculptures, bronze bells, and educational displays to view, according to the Visit Zanesville website.

Once things are resolved, the Trump statue will be shipped off to the Trump National Doral Golf Club in Florida, where a 7,000-pound pedestal has already been installed, according to the NYT article. 

Want to read more? Check out our print publications, (614) Magazine and Stock & Barrel. Learn where you can find free copies of our newest issues here!

BROUGHT TO YOU BY