Social media in a hilarious uproar over 1930s statue of ‘shirtless young stud’ Abraham Lincoln

A scantily clad sculpture of Abraham Lincoln made in the 1930s has become a viral sensation on Twitter, with many pleasantly amused by the 16th President’s toned physique. 

Screenwriter Zack Stentz shared a picture of studly eight foot sculpture on Wednesday. It has been in the Los Angeles Federal Building since 1939.

‘Reminder that the Los Angeles federal courthouse has a statue of Abraham Lincoln where he’s a shirtless young stud suggestively tugging at his waistband like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model,’ Stenz said in the post that garnered more than 56,000 likes. 

Hot Abe stands with his hand nestled along the waistline of his trousers. The Great Emancipator is holding a book in his other arm. 

But folks on social media couldn’t help but point out how toned and svelte Lincoln’s body looked, poking fun and coming up with puns. #HonestAbs quickly became trending on Thursday night 

‘The Gettysburg Undress,’ said Alec MacGillis. 

Simon Gurr got in on the puns and called the statue ‘Baberaham Twinkoln.’

But folks on social media couldn’t help but point out how toned and svelte Lincoln’s body looked, poking fun and coming up with puns

David Roy Stewart added: ‘Amongst the lawyers at the courthouse it’s considered good luck to tweak Honest Abe’s nipples.’

Bryan Jensen asked: ‘Is he trying to get Justice to take off her blindfold?’

‘Four-score and seven inches ago,’ joked Robert A George.

Jamie Bernstein shared a photo of a similar hot Abe statue that exists in Chicago. 

Jamie Bernstein shared a photo of a similar hot Abe statue that exists in Chicago but many pointed out that it looked like Tilda Swinton

But a few users posted a clip from a Life Magazine article that featured an interview with sculptor James Lee Hansen, the man who created the statue in the late 1930s

Hansen, who was 22 when he started the sculpture, used his own likeness to mold the Indiana limestone into Abraham Lincoln

‘We have a hot Lincoln statue in Chicago too!’ she said as others pointed out that that statue resembled Tilda Swinton. 

But a few users posted a clip from a Life Magazine article that featured an interview with sculptor James Lee Hansen, the man who created the statue in the late 1930s. 

In a 1941 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Hansen explained that he left the shirt and shoes off the statue because ‘from a sculpturing standpoint, it’s better to show the body without any clothes. That’s why I left ’em off.’

Hansen, who was 22 when he started the sculpture, used his own likeness to mold the Indiana limestone into Abraham Lincoln. The clipping from Life features a photo of Hansen next to the statue, and his gangly but toned frame is almost perfectly replicated in the statue. 

The artist had been a struggling student at the Los Angeles Art Center School and had entered the statue into a government competition. Submitting his work anonymously to the Fine Arts Section of the Federal Works Agency, Hansen won the competition and a check for $7200.

Shocked by his win, Hansen promptly brought himself a new car and wrecked it. The centenarian wound up in jail for 18 months as a result.

In a 1941 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Hansen explained that he left the shirt and shoes off the statue because ‘from a sculpturing standpoint, it’s better to show the body without any clothes. That’s why I left ’em off.’