# Why are bronze statues of celebrities so horrible? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 11, 2023, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416 "2023-08-11T18:09:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/162 "2025-12-11T21:49:34Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > Bronze is remarkably strong. Depends on if the statue is solid or hollow. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/163 "2025-12-11T21:51:44Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Depends on if the statue is solid or hollow. Even hollow, it’d have to be pretty thinly constructed to crumple under the weight of a child. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/164 "2025-12-11T21:55:23Z")
I think that was because they couldn’t bore iron to make one-piece cannon barrels. Iron barrels had to be welded or riveted and thus were prone to explode. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/165 "2025-12-11T22:03:39Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Even hollow, it’d have to be pretty thinly constructed to crumple under the weight of a child. You’re right, the last time I held a bronze object, it was an authentic replica of the Nebra sky disc, made from original materials and in the original size and weight. Although it’s quite small and only a few millimeters thick, it’s a quite heavy and sturdy object. This replica belongs to a friend of mine who only lives a few kilometers from the Mittelberg where the disc was found, and I also saw the original in the archaeological museum in Halle. It is one of the coolest historical artifacts I ever saw. > **[Nebra sky disc](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebra_sky_disc)** > > The Nebra sky disc (German: Himmelsscheibe von Nebra, .mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}pronounced \[ˈhɪml̩sˌʃaɪbə fɔn ˈneːbra\]) is a bronze disc of around 30 cm (12 in) diameter and a weight of 2.2 kg (4.9 lb), having a blue-green patina and inlaid with gold symbols. These symbols are interpreted generally as the Sun or full moon Two g... ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/166 "2025-12-11T22:07:32Z")
My understanding is that it was even after they could bore the iron, the iron guns had a nasty habit of exploding, had to be cast thicker so they were more heavy, wore out more quickly, and rusted. Probably way more than you ever want to know about old naval artillery. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/cCF-yST2E3w/maxresdefault.jpg "Naval Guns (1650 to 1820) - Stop blowing holes in my ship!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCF-yST2E3w) ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/167 "2025-12-11T22:08:34Z")
Interesting, thanks! ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2025, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/168 "2025-12-11T22:35:23Z")
When the engineers of the Manhattan Project were designing the gun-type atomic bomb (Little Boy) that would fire a piece of U-235 into another piece to create a critical mass, they looked at the existing manuals for designing cannons that could fire a projectile of the given mass at the necessary speed. They were alarmed at how heavy the “gun” would have to be until someone pointed out that their cannon only had to fire once. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2026, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/169 "2026-04-25T09:00:58Z")
New statue of [Monty Python star Terry Jones](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpvxe049zwpo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss) looks more like Michael Palin imho ! ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2026, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416/170 "2026-04-26T15:26:39Z")
Love that statue [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-bronze-statues-of-celebrities-so-horrible/988416.md?page=8)