Talk about losing your head in the heat. A 3,000-lb wax statue honoring former president Abraham Lincoln , which is located outside Garrison Elementary in Washington, D.C.
, melted as temperatures hit triple digits last weekend, according to multiple media outlets. Pictures and video of the statue, that have since gone viral after hitting social media, capture the sculpture of the former president slumped in into his chair. Before long, Lincoln’s head was the first to go, then a leg and then a foot, per the BBC .
This spurred the staff at CulturalDC , a non-profit organization that commissioned the 6-foot figure, to “purposely remove” the head of the statue to “prevent it from falling and breaking.” In an update on their website, the organization said that the wax sculpture by artist Sandy Williams IV – which is officially named “40 acres: Camp Barker” – was “intended to be burnt like a candle and to change over time,” but the scorching temperatures seemingly sped up the process. The organization also mentioned that the congealing point – where it begins to harden or melt – of the wax used in the statue is 140 degrees.
“With this record-level heat, Lincoln has slumped into his chair more than ever anticipated!” the group wrote. “All that wax is leannnnnnnning back under the weight of 2024 and the state of our warming planet.” Moving forward, the organization added that they can’t “guarantee he’ll be sitting up straight for the months ahe.