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View all monuments in NYC Parks, as well as temporary public art installations on our NYC Public Art Map and Guide.

Duke Ellington Memorial

  • Location: Duke Ellington Circle, 110th Street and 5th Avenue
  • Sculptor: Robert Graham
  • Description: Standing figure (heroic scale) before a grand piano on a circular platform supported by three groups of three caryatids on three triform columns, integral plinth, two plaques on pedestal
  • Materials: Bronze, red granite, aggregate
  • Dimensions: Ellington figure H: 8'; each caryatid H: 4'; each triform column H: 10'; sculpture total H: 25'; upper plaque H: 5" W: 10"; lower plaque H: 2¼" W: 7½"
  • Cast: ca. 1997
  • Dedicated: July 1, 1997
  • Foundry: Artworks Foundry; contact: Piero L. Mussi
  • Fabricator: Gilad Ben-Artzi
  • Donor: Duke Ellington Memorial Fund

Please note, the NAME field includes a primary designation as well as alternate namingsoften in common or popular usage. The DEDICATED field refers to the most recent dedication, most often, butnot necessarily the original dedication date. If the monument did not have a formal dedication, the yearlisted reflects the date of installation.

For more information, please contact Art & Antiquities at (212) 360-8143

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Know Before You Go

There are currently 3 service interruptions affecting access within this park.

ParkCentral Park

Raccoons in Central Park have tested positive for canine distemper virus. Although the virus cannot be transmitted to humans, it may be transmitted to dogs. Keep your pets safe in the park.

Please avoid wildlife and make sure your pets have up-to-date distemper and rabies vaccines. Keep your pet on a leash, especially during dawn and dusk.

Please call 311 or notify an on-site Parks employee if you see a sick or injured animal.

If you are bitten, wash the wound with soap and water immediately. Call your doctor to see if you need tetanus or rabies shots, and call 311 to report the bite.

The Health Department will continue to monitor this condition.


Anticipated Completion: Summer 2018

Nature CentersBelvedere Castle Visitor Center

Beginning Monday, February 26, Belvedere Castle will be closed for restoration. The castle will reopen to the public in 2019. To reach our Urban Park Rangers at Central Park, please call (212) 360-1444.

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Beginning Monday, February 26, Belvedere Castle will be closed for restoration. The surrounding plaza and terrace remain open, but will also close in the coming weeks. The Belvedere will reopen to the public in 2019. For more information on the restoration of Belvedere Castle, please visit Central Park Conservancy's website.

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