Thousands of excited onlookers watched on 12 July 2011 as workers gently hoisted the gold-leafed statue of the angel Moroni on top of the east spire of the Brigham City Utah Temple, currently under construction.
The angel Moroni statue begins its ascent to the top of the Brigham City Utah Temple.
Placement of the angel Moroni is one of the early visible highlights of the construction period of a temple. There is no formal ceremony attached to the statue’s placement.
An estimated 5,000 people witnessed the angel Moroni statue being hoisted to the top of the Brigham City Utah Temple.
Although not required, this iconic symbol of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands high atop most of the 134 temples worldwide.
A large crane slowly lifted the angel Moroni statue to its resting place atop the Brigham City Utah Temple.
The statue of Moroni is not a figure of worship, but rather one of respect for his role in the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Moroni was a real person, an ancient prophet in the Book of Mormon who revealed the location of golden plates to the young Joseph Smith in 1823 from which the sacred book of scripture was translated.
Construction workers in a basket help guide the Angel Moroni into place on the Brigham City Utah Temple.
With the horn pressed to his lips and his right hand holding the outstretched horn, the statue of Moroni symbolizes the restoration and the preaching of it to the world.
Onlookers were fixated on the progress of the angel Moroni statue's ascent to the top spire of the Brigham City Utah Temple.
Latter-day Saints believe Joseph Smith restored the original church established by Jesus Christ anciently.
Installers work from a basket to secure the Angel Moroni statue atop the east spire of the Brigham City Utah Temple.
In 1820, Joseph Smith said he had a vision where he saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. It was this experience which led Joseph Smith to begin restoring Christ’s early church.
The Angel Moroni statue is slowly lifted to the top of the east spire of the Brigham City Utah Temple.
Most angel Moroni statues are patterned after the one on the Salt Lake Temple, which was completed in 1893.
The statue's sculptor, Cyrus E. Dallin, who was not a Latter-day Saint, wrote that working on the project “brought me nearer to God than anything I ever did. It seemed to me that I came to know what it means to commune with angels from heaven.”