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Banker's Heart

A shining, cold, black organ lies in San Francisco's financial district.

San Francisco, California

Added By
Sue Olivier
31DEC22   shaunk82 / Atlas Obscura User
The Banker’s Heart sculpture in front of the old Bank of America building.   solivier / Atlas Obscura User
“The Banker’s Heart” in the A.P. Giannini Plaza.   Map data ©2017 Google
“Transcendence” by Masayuki Nagare.   Dgies/CC BY-SA 3.0
  tylercole / Atlas Obscura User
  tylercole / Atlas Obscura User
Morning experience   teddrake / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Outside one of the Financial District's tallest towers lies a glistening hunk of black granite that's come to represent a very odd symbol.

The sculpture's official name is "Transcendence," and it was sculpted by Masayuki Nagare from 200 tons of black Swedish granite. It was commissioned in 1969 for the A.P. Giannini Plaza of 555 California Street, the building that was originally the headquarters for Bank of America, and as such, a hub of San Francisco finance.

But the monolith earned a new name after San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen dubbed it the "Banker's Heart." The name suited the slick, sinewy artwork, and it stuck. Though Bank of America moved its headquarters to North Carolina, it left its heart in San Francisco.

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Banks Sculptures Hearts Hearts Week Statues

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In the block bounded by California, Kearny, Pine, and Montgomery Streets in San Francisco, California.

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Added By

solivier

Published

February 15, 2017

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