Just in time for holiday gift giving, the Finance and Administration Cabinet’s Division of Historic Properties announces the release of the 2007 Kentucky State Capitol ornament, the fifth in this limited-edition series.

This year’s ornament features a replica of the 14-foot bronze statue of Abraham Lincoln that has stood majestically on a serpentine marble base in the Capitol Rotunda since 1911. The ornament depicts the Lincoln statue surrounded by poinsettias, as it is each Christmas season. The United States and commonwealth of Kentucky flags grace the sides of the ornament under the banner “Kentucky State Capitol.” The year 2007 is etched at the foot of the ornament.

Each expertly crafted ornament is packaged in its own presentation box along with a brief history of the Lincoln statue and its significance to the Capitol. As have all prior official Capitol ornaments, the 2007 edition has been masterfully created by the ChemArt Company, which also designs and provides the annual White House Christmas ornament to collectors around the world.

The Capitol statue of Lincoln was unveiled on November 8, 1911 by President William Howard Taft and Henry Watterson, editor of the Louisville Courier-Journal. It was a gift to the commonwealth from James Breckenridge Speed of Louisville. At a cost of nearly $40,000, the statue was sculpted by Adolph Alexander Weinman and cast by the renowned Roman Bronze Works in New York City. Weinman also sculpted the statute of Lincoln that is displayed in Hodgenville, Kentucky, near the former president’s birthplace.

Born in Hardin County on February 12, 1809, Lincoln is one of Kentucky’s most notable native sons. A national celebration in honor of the 16th president’s 200th birthday will begin on February 12, 2008 in Hodgenville, Kentucky. Celebrations and other planned activities are ongoing in communities throughout the commonwealth and in Indiana and Illinois through the official closing of the bicentennial commemoration on February 12, 2010.

Proceeds from the sale of the commemorative ornament go to the Division of Historic Properties’ endowment fund for the restoration and preservation of Kentucky’s beautiful state Capitol building as it approaches its 100th anniversary.

Ornaments may be purchased for $20 each and are available at the Berry Mansion, the Capitol Gift Shop, the 1792 Store at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History, the Frankfort/Franklin County Tourism and Convention Commission Center and the Capital City Museum, all in Frankfort. The ornament may also be viewed and purchased online at http://www.historicproperties.ky.gov/ornament.htm or by phone at (502) 564-3000.

For more information about the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration, please visit http://www.kylincoln.org.