I was just walking by the corner of Murray and Church, which is two blocks from Ground Zero, and did a massive double-take when I saw the store-front art installation titled A Cross-Section of the North American Continental Plate, 2000 by John Stoney.

What at first looked like some brown fuzz on top of a 5x5x2 foot plaster slab is actually an insanely-detailed miniature model of every major building or structure on the island.

Here's the text from the caption plate:

John Stoney created a full scale model of Manhattan in 2000, representing the fourteen-mile section of the North American continental plate that New York was built upon. The city itself is carved out of a one-inch plank of wood. This is the first public exhibition of Stoney's phenomenally intricate sculpture. The scale is 1 inch=1250 feet.

I can see all my familiar landmarks south of the Brooklyn Bridge including the FDR highway, South Street Seaport, AIG Headquarters at 70 Pine, and even the Statten Island Ferry dockhouse entrances.

Seeing the twin towers on this model on a spot the size of a dime puts into perspective how much of NYC was unscathed by the destruction.

I've got to come back with the Coolpix to get some real photos.

Here's press story on the installation.

P.S. Bah!!! The N key on my keyboard is startig to die....

- mike lee - new york and baltimore - curiouslee.com