Washington Square Arch

The Washington Square Arch, is a marble Roman triumphal arch built in 1892 in Washington Square Park in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It celebrates the centennial of George Washington's inauguration as President of the United States in 1789 and forms the grand southern terminus of Fifth Avenue.

Washington Square Arch, constructed of white Tuckahoe marble, was conceived by Stanford White who imitated a Roman Trumphal Arch, iconic monuments Roman Emperors built throughout the empire to celebrate a victory or event. Another famous Arc de Triomphe, built in 1806–1836 in Paris, itself copied from the Arch of Titus, in Rome built c. 82 AD. Washington Square Arch stands 77 feet high. The piers stand 30 feet apart and the arch opening is 47 feet high. The iconography of the Arch centers on images of war and peace. On the frieze are 13 large stars and 42 small stars interspersed with capital "W"s. The spandrels contain figures of Victory. The inscription on the attic story reads:

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