Replica Of Long-Lost Verrazzano Sculpture Unveiled In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- City Councilman Vincent Gentile unveiled a replica of a long-lost sculpture of Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano on Wednesday.
The unveiling was held at John J. Carty Park in Fort Hamilton -- the Brooklyn side of the Verrazano–Narrows Bridge.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority recently held a ceremony on Staten Island to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the bridge.
But Gentile and his colleagues did not attend the MTA's ceremony, saying Brooklyn was "dissed and dismissed."
"Now that we've reached the half-century mark of the bridge and the anniversary, this seemed to be the appropriate time to do it," Gentile told 1010 WINS. "The Parks Department stepped up to the plate."
"And it also gives us an opportunity to have a celebration on the anniversary of the bridge on the Brooklyn side of the bridge," the councilman continued.
Gentile said now both Brooklyn and Staten Island residents can take pride in the sculpture.
"He was the first known explorer to enter New York Bay, so it is appropriate that we name this for Verrazzano," he said. "And this bridge has connected Brooklyn and Staten Island in so many ways over the 50 years. It is amazing that the two boroughs have melded together."
The new sculpture was incorporated onto the Verrazzano Memorial Flagstaff -- a pedestal of white and black Italian marble which held the original bronze sculptural relief of Verrazzano.
The original relief was stolen in the early 1980s and the new sculpture was recast along with four rusticated stones at the monument base from the Verrazzano castle in Greve in Chianti, Italy, where the explorer was born.
Verrazzano's name is misspelled on the bridge.
Check Out These Other Stories From CBSNewYork.com:
