Electra
Electra is the 23-foot-tall, golden statue atop the eastern end of the tiled roof of the 1925 Alabama Power Building at 600 18th Street North.
The original plans for the building included a lighted "Alabama Power Co." sign running along the top of the ridge. Architect William Warren suggested that the board consider an alternative, a statue representing "the state of Alabama rising triumphantly in her electrical progress". The suggestion was approved by a unanimous vote.
Electra, originally entitled "Divinity of Light," was sculpted by Edward Field Sanford, Jr of New York. His design consisted of a graceful nude female holding six lightning bolts over her head. The 4,000 pound bronze casting was covered in gold leaf.
The statue was secured in place on May 10, 1926. That summer, Birmingham Post satirist "Dr. B. U. L. Conner" began a series of illustrated fanciful episodes in the courtship of Electra by Birmingham's other scantily-clad mythical colossus, Vulcan. The potholes on 18th Street were explained as the smitten god's footprints. The popular serial cemented the pair's storied connection into the city's common folklore even before Vulcan was moved to Red Mountain in the 1930s.
In 1996 to celebrate her 70th anniversary, Electra was completely cleaned and regilded.
References
- Conner, Dr. B. U. L. (July 1926) "Love Story of Vulcan and Electra." series. The Birmingham Post
- Kemp, Kathy (October 19, 2003) "Art show may rekindle mythic love." The Birmingham News
- Atkins, Leah Rawls (2006) Developed for the Service of Alabama: The Centennial History of the Alabama Power Company, 1906-2006 Birmingham: Alabama Power Company. ISBN 0978675304