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The hidden meaning of this NYC monument is revealed by the sun once a year

Will Gleason
Written by
Will Gleason
Editor, Time Out New York
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Manhattanhenge isn’t the only notable celestial alignment that takes place in Manhattan. A less well-known solar occurrence happens every summer in Battery Park.

The New York Korean War Veterans Memorial was dedicated in 1991 to the soldiers that served in the Korean War. Designed by artist Mac Adams, the 15-foot high block of black granite obelisk has the shape of the soldier cut out of the center known as the “Universal Soldier.”

The memorial may seem straightforward enough, but it also boasts a hidden celestial secret. Every July 27 at 10am, the sun shines through the soldier’s head and illuminates a commemorative plaque installed at the foot of the statue.

Why is the memorial perfectly aligned for that moment every year? Because it was the exact time that hostilities ceased in Korea in 1953. 

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