In a post-President’s Day afterglow, an eight-foot-tall statue of a young and shirtless Abraham Lincoln has gone viral, and the internet can’t stop buzzing about his sex appeal.
The statue, sculpted in 1939 and housed at a courthouse in downtown Los Angeles, gained a new level of exposure after Twitter user Zack Stentz posted a picture of it last Monday. The statue, which depicts Lincoln shirtless, ripped with muscle and with his thumb tucked into his waistband over a bulging crotch, immediately gained attention with fellow users labeling it “The Gettysburg Undress” and “Honest Abs.”
Reminder that the Los Angeles federal courthouse has a statue of Abraham Lincoln where he's a shirtless young stud suggestively tugging at his waistband like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model: pic.twitter.com/32bjqEERYi
— Zack Stentz (@MuseZack) February 20, 2019
The statue also inspired a bit of detective work, with internet sleuths digging up an interview with the statue’s sculptor James Lee Hansen talking about his motives for sculpting Abe shirtless. “Well, from a sculpturing standpoint, it’s better to show the body without any clothes,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “That’s why I left ’em off.” Hansen also earned $7,200 to complete the work.
Related: Was Abe Lincoln Really Gay?
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The Abercombie-esque statue has also reignited speculation about the 16th President’s sexuality. A number of historians have speculated that Lincoln could have been bisexual, with his friend Joshua Speed frequently singled out as a possible lover, even in contemporary accounts of their friendship.
Billy Budd
It is extremely homoerotic. I would DO Lincoln without a second thought.
@HarryB
To tell the truth i dont really understand why it goes viral.
Curtispsf
Whatever you do, Abe DON’T go to Ford’s Theater.
Davidparacka
If Lincoln was gay, he’s very do-able. Go Abe!