Split-level Bethesda Terrace, near 72nd Street overlooking the lake, was designed in the 1860s to be the heart of Central Park—a grand place of people-watching and socializing.
It’s the site of some of the park’s most beautiful features: Bethesda Fountain, the “Angel of the Waters” sculpture, and the tiles adorning the ceiling of the ground-level arcade.
But don’t overlook the gorgeous ornamental stone carvings on the staircases leading to the fountain.
British-born designer Jacob Wrey Mould created these whimsical reliefs of birds and foliage—a lovely reminder of spring and summer all year round.
Tags: Angel of the Waters, beauty in Central Park, Bethesda Fountain, Bethesda Fountain staircases, Bethesda Terrace, Central Park sculptures, designing Central Park, jacob Wrey Mould
Ephemeral New York 
June 11, 2011 at 3:22 am |
[…] a lot like the stone carvings of Central Park’s Bethesda Terrace. No wonder: Both parks were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert […]
July 8, 2012 at 7:43 am |
Thank you for providing a name for the artist who created these wonderful pieces. Whenever I pass through the terrace I have to stop for a longer look at them. They are not simply generic carvings, each panel is different. You can identify each bird and plant. It’s one of those little details that pop out at you all over the park. Could the steps have been left unadorned? Certainly. Yet when I look at these sculptures I get a feeling of joy at their beauty and I wish that my hands and mind were clever enough to do something as lovely.
August 27, 2021 at 7:26 am |
Tom
Above you state the one can identify each bird. Do you know of anyone who has attempted to do so?
With the assistance of a Audubon retiree we have been trying to do so.
Do you know of any keys that have all birds (and plants) identified/
thanks
Ron Korcak
October 7, 2013 at 2:49 am |
[…] one of the most enchanting parts of Central Park: two elegant staircases uniting two levels in the middle of the park, linking the Mall to the Lake and culminating at […]
July 14, 2014 at 5:28 am |
[…] [Below, finishing the staircase at Bethesda Terrace] […]
October 13, 2014 at 7:31 am |
[…] 1871, when a new fountain designed by Jacob Wrey Mould (he designed bridges in Central Park and decorative elements at Bethesda Terrace) replaced […]
April 14, 2017 at 6:17 am |
[…] in 1863, Bethesda Terrace was one of the first structures to go up in Central Park—and it’s also one of the most […]
April 21, 2017 at 6:55 am |
[…] Wray Mould, who designed many of Central Park’s loveliest structures as well as the carvings along Bethesda Terrace, built a Victorian-style sheepfold near West 64th Street (below, in 1884) that housed the flock at […]
September 27, 2021 at 2:27 am |
[…] temporary vault was designed by Jacob Wrey Mould, chief architect of New York City’s Department of Public Works. “With outside dimensions of […]