It's a free country, or so they say. When French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi was commissioned to build a monumental statue to be given to the United States, he was in for a rude awakening: an arcane zoning regulation which could block the installation of the now famous statue. Dating back to before the American Revolution, New York City ordinance 56-0894 required that all structures and vessels in New York Harbor be able to float. While the Statue of Liberty had been originally commissioned to be built of bronze, sculptor Bartholdi realized that his project could be easily scuttled if he couldn't come up with an alternative construction material. As fate would have it, Bartholdi's compatriot Gustave Eiffel was -- at that same time -- conducting now-forgotten studies into the use of foam as a substitute for steel in large engineering structures. In exchange for 10 cases of wine from Bartholdi's hometown and a large number of francs, Eiffel was persuaded to share his patented procedure with the sculptor. In the end, it was foam, francs and a delightful bordeaux that saved the jour.