Postage Stamp Features Wrong Statue Of Liberty, Triggers Lawsuit
This looks to be one of the most egregiously embarrassing mistakes in the history of the U.S. Postal Service:
The stamp design released in 2011 was not based on the statue in New York Harbor, as intended, but on a replica outside the New York-New York casino hotel in Las Vegas. Now, the sculptor who made the Lady Liberty of the Las Vegas Strip is suing the government for copyright infringement.
Attorneys for Robert Davidson argue in a suit filed last week that the Sin City statue was more “fresh-faced” and “sultry” than the original. They say these differences caused the Postal Service to prefer Davidson’s statue.
A spokesman for the Postal Service did not immediately return calls. The Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor has appeared on more than 20 stamps.
Davidson’s attorneys say the Lady Liberty who welcomes weary gamblers has a more feminine form. The original, they say, was just an “inspiration.”
The post office selected the close-up photograph of the statue’s head and crown from a photography service. The agency did not find out about the error until a stamp magazine ran an exposé.
The two ladies do look unmistakably different. The Las Vegas sister has more stylish hair, and appears to be smirking slightly.
