Lindt & Sprungli, the world's leading producers of premium chocolate, today unveiled a grand-scale, 12-foot Lindt Gold Bunny chocolate sculpture in the Grand Courtyard of The New York Palace Hotel. The sculpture -- made with nearly 1,000 premium chocolate Lindt Gold Bunnies -- was designed and built by two graduate civil engineering students from Manhattan College.

"Beloved by chocolate aficionados around the globe and crafted by the Lindt Master Swiss Chocolatiers, the Lindt Gold Bunny is an iconic figure of Easter," said Thomas Linemayr, president and chief executive officer of Lindt USA. "We're thrilled to see Gold Bunny come to life through the sculpture on Madison Avenue for all to enjoy this Easter."

LINDT GOLD BUNNY SCULPTURE

Created using more than 160,000 grams of the finest quality milk chocolate, the Lindt Gold Bunny sculpture stands 12 feet high and approximately eight feet in width. Utilizing a high-pressure shelving system, the structure was designed and created by graduate students from the Civil Engineering Department at Manhattan -- Richard Cassidy and Daniel Hochstein, of Cortland Manor and Mount Kisco, New York, respectively.

"As chocolate lovers and skilled engineers, my students found the experience of working with Lindt & Sprungli very valuable," said Dr. Moujalli Hourani, chairman of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Manhattan College. "The creation of the Lindt Gold Bunny sculpture provided them with the opportunity to apply their engineering skills to create a project that will be viewed and enjoyed by thousands of people this Easter."

The New York Palace Hotel is located at 455 Madison Avenue between East 50th Street and East 51st Street. The sculpture can be viewed in the hotel's Grand Courtyard located directly outside of the critically acclaimed GILT Restaurant. For more information on The New York Palace Hotel and GILT Restaurant & Bar, please visit or .

LINDT GOLD BUNNY EGGSTRAVAGANZA

To celebrate the creation of the Lindt Gold Bunny Sculpture and Easter, Lindt and The New York Palace Hotel are hosting a Lindt Gold Bunny Eggstravaganza on Saturday, March 22nd from 2:00-4:00 pm. The event includes an Easter Egg Hunt which will commence at 2:30 pm.

Rain or shine, children and families are invited to come to the courtyard of The New York Palace to participate in a search for premium chocolate bunnies and eggs. The first 250 children under 12 to arrive will receive their very own Easter baskets and will be invited to join in the hunt for thousands of delicious treasures!

Additionally, consumers will have the opportunity to have their photos taken with the Lindt Gold Bunny and guess the number of bunnies used to fill the Lindt Gold Bunny Smart Car for a matched donation to a children's charity.

LINDT GOLD BUNNY

First crafted in 1952 by the Lindt Master Swiss Chocolatiers, Gold Bunny is an iconic Lindt character whose reign as the ultimate chocolate product spans more than five decades. During the Easter 2007 season, there were 18 Lindt Gold Bunnies sold every second.* Gold Bunny is sold at Lindt Chocolate Shops and select wholesale locations in more than 50 countries around the world and is available in milk, dark, and white chocolate in a variety of sizes, from .4 oz to 2.2 lbs.

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*This statistic is according to Lindt data and was based on a six-week selling period.

About Lindt

Founded in 1845, Lindt & Sprungli is a global leader in the premium chocolate category, offering high-quality products in more than 80 countries. Lindt & Sprungli operates eight production facilities in Europe and the United States and employs more than 7,000 worldwide. Lindt USA operates more than 100 retail stores throughout the country and maintains wide distribution through extensive retail and wholesale channels. For more information on Lindt, visit

About The New York Palace Hotel

The very finest in old-world elegance and new-world opulence can be found just beyond the courtyard gates of The New York Palace Hotel on the corner of 50th & Madison. With 805 rooms and 88 suites, The Palace is known for unparalleled splendor, spectacular views, and exquisite service. The Hotel's world-renowned courtyard incorporates motifs from several 15th-century Italian cathedrals and has served as the entranceway to the historic Villard Mansion since 1882. Today, The New York Palace Hotel gracefully blends the landmark Villard Mansion with a contemporary 55-story tower for the guestrooms that was completed in 1980. December of 2005, The Palace welcomed the critically acclaimed GILT Restaurant to the south wing of The Villard Mansion.

About Manhattan College

Founded in 1853, Manhattan College is an independent, Catholic, coeducational institution of higher learning, offering more than 40 major programs of undergraduate study in the areas of arts, business, education, engineering and science, along with graduate programs in education and engineering. For more information about Manhattan College, visit .