A 22-foot golden statue of Donald Trump now stands at his golf club in Miami. It’s called “Don Colossus.” It was paid for by crypto investors. And it came with a church ceremony.
The statue went up at Trump National Doral in late April 2026, timed to coincide with the Cadillac Championship — the PGA Tour’s first event at the course since 2016. World leaders attending the G20 summit at the same venue in December will walk past it on arrival.
What the Statue Actually Looks Like
It’s bronze, covered in gold leaf, and depicts Trump with his right fist raised. That pose matches the exact moment he stood up at his Butler, Pennsylvania rally on July 13, 2024 — seconds after a bullet grazed his ear.
The statue itself is 15 feet tall. It sits on a 7-foot concrete pedestal, which brings the total height to 22 feet. Sculptor Alan Cottrill, 73, built it out of his studio in Zanesville, Ohio.
Cottrill told the Daily Beast the gold leaf finish was his own idea. He pitched it to Trump’s team — which included two White House representatives, two crypto people, Pastor Mark Burns, and two Doral Golf Club reps on the same call. Their response was instant. “It’s like pitching ice water to a man dying of thirst,” Cottrill said. “It was not a hard sell.”
That upgrade pushed the total cost from $300,000 to $360,000. A separate copyright dispute — the $PATRIOT crypto group used images of the statue for token marketing before paying Cottrill — added another $90,000. Final bill: $450,000. Cottrill held the statue until he was paid in full.
Who Paid for It and Why
The statue was commissioned by a group of crypto investors as a promotional push for their memecoin, $PATRIOT. It wasn’t a government project. It wasn’t the White House. It was a coin launch tied to a gold statue of the sitting president.
Eric Trump tried to put distance between the family and the project earlier this year. “We appreciate the support and enthusiasm,” he said, “but we want to be crystal clear — we are not involved in this coin.” The statue still ended up at the family’s golf course.
This isn’t the first Trump statue to go up. A smaller gold figure appeared at CPAC in Orlando in 2021. Renderings for Trump’s future presidential library in Miami already show another massive golden statue out front.
The Dedication Ceremony
Pastor Mark Burns led the unveiling. He’s been part of Pastors for Trump since 2023 and is widely described as Trump’s informal spiritual adviser. Burns said Trump called him personally and spoke to the crowd directly. The White House said it had no involvement in the project.
Burns posted about it on X. “Today at Trump National Doral Miami, history was made.” He called the event “far more than a ribbon-cutting” — describing it as “a moment of gratitude, honor, and remembrance.”
He addressed the obvious comparison head-on. “This is not a golden calf,” Burns said. “We worship the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone.” He framed the statue as a symbol of “resilience, freedom, patriotism, courage, and the will to keep fighting for America” — and as a reminder of what he called God’s protection over Trump’s life across multiple assassination attempts.
TruthRoute covered SNL’s take on Trump’s April news cycle here: SNL Cold Open April 12, 2026 — Trump’s Oval Office phone calls.
Trump’s Gold Aesthetic — It’s Not Stopping at Doral
The Oval Office was redesigned after Trump returned to the White House — gold-colored details on furnishings, lighting, and decor throughout. A “Presidential Walk of Fame” now lines the West Wing colonnade with portraits of past presidents in gold frames. The administration also launched “Trump Gold Cards,” a visa scheme aimed at wealthy foreign investors.
Don Colossus fits right in. When PGA Tour photographers asked staff at Doral if they wanted a group photo with the statue, the answer — according to Golfweek — was a collective “No.”
The statue was ready to install at Trump’s inauguration in January 2025. It took over a year to actually go up, held back by a payment fight between the sculptor and the crypto group. It’s there now — and it’ll be the first thing heads of state see when they arrive at the G20 in December.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Don Colossus statue?
Don Colossus is a 22-foot gold-leafed bronze statue of President Donald Trump installed at Trump National Doral golf club in Miami in April 2026. It was commissioned by crypto investors promoting the $PATRIOT memecoin and sculpted by Alan Cottrill of Zanesville, Ohio.
How much did Trump’s golden statue cost?
The statue cost $450,000 total. The original price was $300,000, a gold leaf upgrade added $60,000, and a copyright dispute over the use of statue images for crypto marketing added another $90,000.
Who built the Don Colossus statue?
Alan Cottrill, a 73-year-old sculptor based in Zanesville, Ohio, built the statue. He said pitching the gold leaf finish to Trump’s team was “like pitching ice water to a man dying of thirst.”
Is Trump’s statue connected to the White House?
The White House says it had no involvement in the project. Eric Trump also said the family is not involved in the $PATRIOT coin. However, Pastor Mark Burns, described as Trump’s informal spiritual adviser, led the dedication ceremony and said Trump called him directly.
Why is the statue at Trump National Doral?
Doral hosted the 2026 Cadillac Championship PGA Tour event when the statue was installed. The venue is also set to host the G20 summit on December 14–15, 2026, meaning world leaders will see the statue when they arrive.