NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — An iconic sculpture that once stood on the plaza of the original World Trade Center has officially been returned to its home.
For more than a decade, Michael Burke fought to have the 25-ton, bronze Koenig Sphere moved from Battery Park back to the World Trade Center site.
With a rededication ceremony Wednesday in Liberty Park, the sphere is now home, overlooking the 9/11 memorial.
“It’s a magnificent spot, magnificent setting, so I’m happy to have it here,” Burke said.
The sculpture was dented and battered by the collapse of the Twin Towers, but it survived.
Burke, who lost his fire captain brother in the attacks, said when he looks at the sculpture, “I see the resiliency, the determination, the strength of New York and America.”
German artist Fritz Koening created the work, which was installed at the old World Trade Center plaza when the towers opened in 1971, around a ring of fountains.
