Long-Planned Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Opens

D.C.'s National Mall welcomes the addition of the 30-foot sculpture

Today, Washington D.C.'s National Mall unveils a new monument: a 30-foot sculpture memorial dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. The Washington Post has a fascinating timeline of the project, which took more than a quarter century to complete from concept to construction. We learned that it cost around $120 million; was financed in part by Ford, Coca Cola, and Exxon Mobil; and had its design reworked in 2008 because a prior image was deemed too "confrontational." But the finished product looks impressive: it's now open to the public and will be officially dedicated this upcoming Sunday. Below are multiple angles of the completed sculpture:

Images by Associated Press