President Donald Trump‘s fascination with all things gold has taken another glittering turn, and this time it left one tourist startled.
His version of expensive taste means putting everything in gold. It started with his transformations outside the White House and in the Oval Office.
The blinding display grabs attention for the wrong reasons, and very few people want to be seen near it.
The newly restored Arts of War and Arts of Peace statues at Arlington Memorial Bridge have become the latest symbol of the president’s push to usher in what his administration calls a “Golden Age” for the nation’s capital.
He once again covered both statues in 23.75-karat gold leaf as part of a $5.1 million restoration project under Trump’s “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Again” initiative.
Amy, a sightseer from Topeka, Kansas, was walking behind the Lincoln Memorial when something unusually bright caught her eye.
One woman took a visit to Washington, D.C to see exactly what the hype was about. What she didn’t expect was for it to startle her.
“I was just like, ‘Whoa, what is that?’” she told D.C. outlet WTOP during an interview.
She and her daughter, Gio, climbed aboard a pedicab for a closer look after realizing they were near the statues.
Visitor reaction: “They look really nice! They’re super shiny and those statues are beautiful!” https://t.co/K5YxQAIEav pic.twitter.com/5cSTvMfCA6
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 31, 2026
Another local D.C. resident said he liked Trump’s renovation of the city, but this one is “over the top.”
American sculptor Leo Friedlander created the sculptures, and Italy presented them to the United States in 1951 to thank America for helping rebuild the country after World War II.
Each bronze monument stands 19 feet tall, stretches 16 feet long, and weighs about 80,000 pounds. Craftsmen originally finished them in gold and later regilded them during restoration projects, including work in the 1970s.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum celebrated the makeover on X by posting a photo of workers putting the finishing touches on the statues.
“@Interior is ushering in a new Golden Age for Washington, D.C. Thank you to all of the workers who are making @POTUS’ vision for a Safe and Beautiful capital possible!” Burgum wrote.
Online, however, reactions were far less unanimous.
“Glad they didn’t blind the tour guide with all that sparkle,” one person joked. Another dismissed the project as “Hideous. Tacky. A waste of our $5 Million.”
“Tacky. Looks like idols from the bible,” another critic wrote, while someone else added, “Waiting for the bird poop.”
Others questioned whether the money could have been better spent elsewhere.. ” “WOW MY GROCERIES WERE CHEAPER THIS MORNING BECAUSE OF ALL THE GOLD STUFF IN WASHINGTON DC THANK YOU!”!” another added.
Someone else joked, “More gold on that statue than there is in Fort Knox.”
The Trump Administration has regilded the bronze Arts of War statues near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC with 23.75-karat gold. The project cost $5.1 million. As you can see they destroyed the child in the restauration. pic.twitter.com/HSICMHJnYz
— alex jungle (@JungleAlex13227) July 30, 2026
The renewed fascination with gold arrives as Trump’s taste for luxury has once again become a topic of conversation.
On July 27, the president announced taxpayers would fund a new presidential motorcade consisting of 250 General Motors-built Cadillac Escalades.
“You know, we ordered, I think, 250 Escalades, right? We ordered 250 Escalades,” Trump said during remarks at the General Motors Proving Ground in Milford, Michigan.
He then explained why he wanted them: “That’s so we look sharp in those cavalcades. We look sharp in those Escalades. Our guys are very spoiled. They’re very spoiled. They like the Escalades. So do I.”
The remarks quickly sparked criticism online, particularly because many Americans continue struggling with rising costs while luxury SUVs can top $100,000 depending on the model.
The shiny bridge statues’ restorations also come just months after another gold Trump monument generated headlines for entirely different reasons.
The 22-foot gold-leaf statue “Don Colossus” debuted at Trump National Doral in Florida in May. The towering monument depicts Trump raising his fist after surviving the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.
But after the unveiling, sculptor Alan Cottrill revealed the behind-the-scenes drama that unfolded during the project.
“I had him even skinnier than he is,” Cottrill told the Miami New Times while describing his original clay model.
‘Don Colossus,’ a 15-foot statue depicting US President Donald Trump, is at the center of a dispute between the Ohio-based sculptor who created it and the cryptocurrency investors who commissioned it. pic.twitter.com/Wgx1pZqDY6
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) February 14, 2026
According to the artist, the project’s backers still insisted Trump looked “too big” and specifically instructed him to slim down the area beneath the president’s chin.
“I’m close enough to his age, and I got some turkey neck going on, and I knew what that was,” Cottrill said. “That’s what happens when you’re almost 80.”
Cottrill later described the commission as “chaos,” saying repeated revision requests turned the statue into an exercise in image management rather than historical accuracy. Still, controversy seems to follow Trump and all installations connected to him.
Recently, an anonymous artist collective erected a 10-foot-tall gold “participation trophy” in New York City.
What initially appeared to honor the president turned out to be a satirical artwork criticizing his role in the Iran conflict once passersby read the plaque.
Whether the latest gleaming statues become another beloved Washington landmark or simply another flashpoint in the debate over Trump’s lavish priorities, they have already accomplished one thing: getting people to stop, stare and talk.
After finally getting close enough to solve the mystery, Amy’s daughter summed up the reaction that has now spread far beyond the nation’s capital.
“Well, I didn’t see them before, but they’re very bright,” Gio said. “They look really nice. They’re super shiny, and those statues are beautiful.”
The revamp of the statues has gotten mixed reviews. However, no one can deny that they are something bright to see. Now, if only the president could focus on getting the economy down, perhaps critics will change their tune.
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