Just in time for King Kamehameha Day, the Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts announced the completion of conservation work on the bronze statue of the Hawaiian monarch fronting Aliiolani Hale in Honolulu.

The foundation says the patina and gilding on statue were restored and that conservation work also will be done on several other sculptures in the Art in Public Places Collection across Hawaii.

In anticipation of holiday observances, the statue was draped with colorful plumeria lei at a special ceremony Friday afternoon before a crowd of dignitaries, officials and visitors.

The 103rd annual King Kamehameha Celebration Floral Parade will start at 9 a.m. today on South King Street fronting Iolani Palace and end at Monsarrat Avenue and Kapiolani Park. This year’s parade celebrates Hawaiian marching band music with the theme “Ku‘upau a Kanile‘a Na Mele Kupuna — Play Without Restraint Until the Songs of Our Ancestors Resound Joyously!” The grand marshals are Aaron David Mahi and John Riggle, both of whom have played instrumental roles in Hawaii’s marching band scene.

The parade route will turn down Punchbowl Street and make a left onto Ala Moana Boulevard, eventually reaching Kalakaua Avenue. Downtown streets will begin to close at 7:30 a.m. today, with other closures as the parade moves along the route before arriving at Kapiolani Park at approximately 11 a.m.

Also today a free hoolaulea will be held at Aloha Tower Marketplace from 4 to 10 p.m. with hula, entertainment, food and booths selling Hawaii-made merchandise.

The King Kamehameha I statue, one of Oahu’s most photographed landmarks, is by American artist Thomas Ridgeway Gould, who lived from 1818 to 1881. Gould sculpted a plaster statue in Boston and shipped it to Florence, Italy, to be cast in bronze, according to the state foundation. The original bronze statue was lost at sea, so the one in front of Aliiolani Hale is the replacement. It was dedicated in 1883.

The original statue was later recovered from the ocean in 1882 and placed near Kamehameha’s birthplace in Kohala on Hawaii island. A replica of the statue was commissioned in 1959, after statehood, to be placed in the U.S. Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.

Four bronze plaques on the base of the pedestal of the King Kamehameha I statue in Honolulu show significant episodes in Kamehameha’s life, including his greeting of Capt. James Cook.

King Kamehameha Day is a state holiday that is observed annually on June 11. Parks, municipal golf courses, botanical gardens and the Honolulu Zoo will be open Tuesday, while satellite city halls and driver licensing centers will be closed along with other state and city government offices. TheBus will operate on a state holiday schedule.