Pershing Mural is completed after 760,000 glass tiles replaced
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Today, the Pershing Mural at Wyuka Park and Cemetery was completed. The reinstallation cost $4 million and years of planning.
The mural is about 150 feet wide and about 40 feet tall, marking it as one of the largest in the world. It is made up of more than 760,000 glass tiles.
The city decided to tear down Pershing Auditorium in Aug. 2023. A group of people decided the Pershing Mosaic needed to be saved.
Pershing Mural Historic Preservation Committee and Superboy Construction removed and restored each tile. They then moved it to Wyuka Park and Cemetery where they put it back up.
“When you look at the size of the mural, you had to stay positive because I don’t think anyone realized how big this mural was on the side of Pershing Auditorium,” said Liz Shea-McCoy, Project Chair of Pershing Mural Historic Preservation Committee. “This project is memory-driven as far as the fundraising. Everybody has a memory of Pershing.”
Luke Holle, owner of Superboy Construction, said the piece was more than just a job.
“I think the main, most important challenge was maintaining the reverence necessary for it,” said Holle. “This isn’t a kitchen backsplash. It’s not a commercial job. It’s piece of art. During the whole process we had to remember that and respect that.”
The next goal is to enter the mural into the Guinness World Records and rework the land in front of the mural. It will be a cultural event center for things like art festivals and performances.
