- The official name of the Oscar statuette is the "Academy Award® of Merit."

- Each statuette stands 13-1/2 inches tall and weighs 8-1/2 pounds.

- Each statuette is made from the alloy Britannium and is then plated in copper, nickel, silver, and finally, 24-karat gold.

- It was designed by Cedric Gibbons, chief art director at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and sculpted by Los Angeles artist George Stanley.

- The Oscar statuette depicts a knight holding a crusader's sword, standing on a reel of film. The film reel features five spokes, signifying the five original branches of the Academy (actors, directors, producers, technicians and writers).

- Since the initial Awards banquet on May 16, 1929, through last year's 79th Academy Awards, 2,658 statuettes have been presented.

- How Oscar received his nickname is not exactly clear. The most popular story is that Margaret Herrick, an Academy librarian and eventual executive director, remarked that the statuette resembled her Uncle Oscar, and the Academy staff began to refer to it by that name. Although the nickname was used with increasing frequency during the late 1930s, the Academy didn't officially use the name Oscar until 1939.

- The Oscar statuette hasn't been altered since its molten birth, except when the pedestal was made higher in 1945.

- Oscars are cast, molded, polished and buffed by R. S. Owens & Company, the Chicago awards specialty company retained by the Academy since 1982 to make the statuettes. The manufacturing process for 50 statuettes takes three to four weeks.

- The Academy presents over ten different types of awards, including the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, Gordon E. Sawyer Award, Special Achievement Award, Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award and the Honorary Award. Read more about other awards presented by the Academy.

- The first Oscar statuette ever presented went to Emil Jannings, named Best Actor for his performances in The Last Command and The Way of All Flesh. Read more about the first Oscar statuette ever presented.

The Oscar statuette is arguably the most recognized award in the world. Its success as a symbol of achievement in filmmaking would doubtless amaze those who attended that inaugural banquet 79 years ago. It stands today, as it has since 1929, without peer, on the mantels of some of the greatest filmmakers in history. Read more about the Academy Award of Merit and the History of the Academy Awards.