A towering golden toilet statue has taken a seat near the Lincoln Memorial, the latest Trump‑themed art installation to appear on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
The nearly 10‑foot sculpture, unveiled March 30 by the anonymous group The Secret Handshake, was inspired byPresident Donald Trump's recent renovation of theWhite House's Lincoln Bathroom. The group says the installation uses humor and spectacle to prompt political discourse.
In an emailed statement to USA TODAY, The Secret Handshake said visitors are allowed to take photos by sitting on the golden throne. The installation is titled "A Throne Fit For a King."
The statue appeared almost a month after the same group installed a separate sculpture on the National Mall depictingTrump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epsteinas characters from "Titanic." The group is also behind another Trump‑Epstein statue that appeared in Washington, DC, in September.
Meaning behind the statue
The Secret Handshake said it created the piece as a tribute to Trump during what it described as a time of "unprecedented division,escalating conflictand economic turmoil." In that context, the group said, the president focused on what "truly mattered": remodeling the Lincoln Bathroom.
The statue, the group added, is meant as a reminder that Trump "isn't just a businessman," but is "taking care of business."
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"It's a tribute to a visionary," the group said in its statement, "who looked down, saw a problem and painted it gold."
White House renovations
Trump revealed amarble‑and‑gold makeover of the Lincoln Bathroomin October, according to previous USA TODAY reporting. The cost of the renovation has yet been disclosed.
"I renovated the Lincoln Bathroom in the White House," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post at the time. He said the bathroom's previous 1940s art‑deco green tile was "totally inappropriate for the Lincoln Era."
The bathroom overhaul is one of several renovation projects Trump has pursued during his second term. Since his inauguration, the president has paved over the Rose Garden lawn,demolished the East Wingand moved forward with plans for a 90,000‑square‑foot ballroom —a project a federal judge ordered haltedTuesday, March 31.
The golden toilet statue, however, is expected to remain on the National Mall for several days, according to The Secret Handshake.
Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Giant golden toilet statue appears near Lincoln Memorial