Five months after being damaged in the September 11 attacks , Fritz Koenig 's '' The Sphere '' , which once stood at the center of the plaza of the World Trade Center a few blocks away , was reinstalled in a temporary location in the northern section of the park . It was located near the Netherlands memorial flagpole in the northeast corner of the park before being moved to Liberty Park in the new World Trade Center in late 2017 . '' The Sphere '' , standing high , was meant to symbolize world peace through world trade , and was , at its original location , in the center of a ring of fountains to mimic the Masjid al-Haram , Great Mosque of Mecca ; '' The Sphere '' had stood at the place in the World Trade Center where the Kaaba was in the Masjid al-Haram . After 2001 , it became a World Trade Center memorial as well ; a plaque alongside '' The Sphere '' reads as follows : Within the park is Hope Garden , a memorial dedicated to AIDS victims , where '' The Sphere '' had been exhibited at times . The garden has also been used as a site for environmental demonstrations due to its fragility and the Battery 's status as a tourist attraction
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
The Battery (Manhattan)