Four massive bronze horses positioned along the roads surrounding the Lincoln Memorial still shine in the sun from their first restoration in the 1970s. But their gold-toned coating is faded and patchy, and their heavy stone bases are cracked and dirty.
The Trump administration wants them glittering with a fresh coat of gold in time for America’s 250th anniversary on July 4. So in mid-April, the National Park Service handeda $5 million contractto a gilding studio in Maryland to repair the statues and cover them with a thick layer of 23.75-karat gold leaf.
It awarded the project without a full competition, according to NPS documents reviewed by NOTUS.
As Trump hurries to put his stamp on a city he’s long denigrated as crumbling and ugly, his administration has doled out tens of millions of dollars for contracts with short timelines and little oversight.
In total, the Interior Department is spending at least $95 million in taxpayer funds for new D.C. beautification projects, according to a NOTUS review of government spending data. All of the projects identified by NOTUS were initiated between December 2025 and April of this year. About $20 million in contracts, including the gilding of the four horses, have not previously been reported.
“It is within the realm of reason to say: It’s the 250th anniversary that’s coming up, and instead of spending a hundred million dollars we normally spend on the District of Columbia, we want to spend $250 million. That’s perfectly normal,” said one former General Services Administration official, making up the dollar amounts to illustrate their point. “What is not normal is the lack of transparency.”
In mid-April, the National Park Service hired The Gilders’ Studio in Maryland to restore the 80,000-pound statue pairs, known as the Arts of War and Arts of Peace. According to agency documentation, the gilding company is covering the statues in an unusually thick layer of nearly pure gold — heavier and purer than even the“extra-thick” goldthe same studio used to refinish the exterior of the Wyoming state capital dome seven years ago.
The $5 million contract includes more work than just the gold leafing, although the gold itself is certain to be a significant part of the cost, with the price of gold essentially doubling over the last several years.
The park service did not do extensive market research on whether the $5 million price was a fair one, according to agency documents reviewed by NOTUS. “Due to the urgent nature of this requirement, market research was limited to available historical data and publicizing a special notice to SAM.gov,” the agency wrote in its award notice in April. The special notice was posted online for only six days.
“Historical data available is minimal as these types of projects are rare for NPS; there are no comparable gilding projects of this monumental size, national significance, public visibility, or technical complexity in the Washington, DC area,” the agency wrote in its award document.
Source: Drudge Report
