King Kamehameha Statue(s)
King Kamehameha Statue Pixabay Public Domain
The King Kamehameha Statue is the perfect place on the island to pay your respects to a dynasty past for the Royal Hawaiian Kingdom, a truly impressive memorial statue located in North Kohala. More specifically, the statue sits right in front of the North Kohala Civic Center, this depiction of a famous warrior, diplomat, and leader is a representative of what united the islands into the Royal Kingdom in 1810.
The man behind the statue, King Kamehameha, was given the birth name Paiea but had it changed to Kamehameha, meaning the "lonely one," shortly into his adult life. The two to three ton Naho Stone statue was forged in Florence in 1880, though the delivering ship sank on its way and a more local replacement was commissioned. In 1912 the sunken statue was miraculously found and restored, bringing a second, though an original, majestic tribute to the kingdom. The other statue can be seen in downtown Hilo, on Waika, as well as a more recent recreation at Ali'iolani Hale.
The statue itself is an 18-foot bronze creation that depicts the king and remains one of the most photographed landmarks in Hawaii to this day. Each June 11th, the statue, and king himself are paid a lot of attention for the local holiday Kamehameha Day, a day in which respects are paid and flower lei are draped around the statues as a sign of memory and respect.
