A 15-foot-tall statue of former President Donald Trump, forged in bronze and gilded in gold leaf, has a house: a 7,000-pound pedestal at one among Trump’s golf resorts.
However this monument, dubbed “Don Colossus,” isn’t just a tribute to the 34-felony-count president. In accordance with the New York Instances, it’s on the coronary heart of a weird cryptocurrency enterprise that’s seen a rollercoaster of economic hopes, authorized disputes, and unusual alliances — and it could simply be the wildest moneymaking scheme of the Trump period.
Abstract
- A 15-foot statue of Trump was used to advertise the struggling PATRIOT memecoin, which misplaced over 90% of its worth shortly after its launch.
- The venture confronted delays, infighting, and a authorized dispute with sculptor Alan Cottrill, who claimed he was owed $75,000 for mental property rights, stalling the statue’s public debut.
- Regardless of the coin’s failure, the venture continues with plans for an official unveiling at Trump’s Doral golf resort.
The statue was funded by cryptocurrency traders who paid $300,000 to fee a sculptor to create it as a homage to Trump. It was then used to advertise PATRIOT, a memecoin with little operate past hypothesis, designed to capitalize on MAGA hype.
The coin went on sale in late 2024, briefly spiking in worth as Trump made daring guarantees about turning the U.S. into the “crypto capital of the planet.” However as with many memecoin ventures, the joy didn’t final.
PATRIOT’s worth plummeted, dropping over 90% of its worth inside months, marred by delays and infighting among the many traders. The statue, initially deliberate for a grand unveiling, turned a logo of the risky and sometimes doubtful nature of memecoins, that are recognized for his or her reliance on viral developments and superstar endorsements.
Nonetheless, its sheer dimension and golden sheen have continued to attract consideration, and it has remained the centerpiece of a advertising and marketing marketing campaign designed to revive the struggling cryptocurrency.
The venture’s backers, together with crypto builders and right-wing activists, used social media to advertise the statue, hoping to achieve sufficient web buzz to revive the coin’s worth.
Official Trump ‘trumps’ Patriot
Whereas the statue was being constructed, it encountered a number of setbacks, together with a conflict with Ohio-based sculptor Alan Cottrill, who claimed he was owed $75,000 for mental property rights. The dispute over using his design for advertising and marketing functions led to a bitter standoff, with Cottrill threatening to withhold the statue till he was absolutely compensated. Regardless of these tensions, the statue’s building proceeded, and a concrete-and-stainless-steel pedestal was put in at Trump’s golf complicated in January 2026.
Although the Trump household publicly distanced itself from the coin, Trump promoted the venture, together with a hyperlink shared to Breitbart Information, and stored the highlight on PATRIOT.
His personal coin, Official Trump (TRUMP), launched shortly earlier than the PATRIOT unveiling, additional complicating the state of affairs and resulting in a drop in curiosity within the competing crypto token. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as the value of PATRIOT tanked simply as Trump’s official token took off.
The PATRIOT saga, although financially rocky, continues to seize the general public’s creativeness. The statue, supposed as a advertising and marketing stunt for the coin, is now poised for an official unveiling in Doral, Florida.
Trump has reportedly expressed curiosity in attending the occasion, although no official date has been set.
Within the meantime, Cottrill remains to be ready for full cost for his work, whereas the traders proceed to advertise the venture on-line, hoping the statue’s golden end will spark renewed curiosity.
Regardless of the setbacks, the statue stands as a logo of one of many stranger intersections between politics, crypto, and superstar tradition. The backers of PATRIOT have insisted that the venture wasn’t about getting wealthy — it was about constructing a “folks’s crypto token” that will rejoice Trump and his supporters.
As of now, it appears extra like a monument to memecoins.
