--- description: The earthquake-damaged obelisk is finally back in shape after 32 months of repair work title: Washington Monument Will Reopen in May image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4183cded1b4e6902/69868744cd804d5e09cc9ed4/479736835.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # After Years of Repairs, the Washington Monument Will Reopen in May by [Per Liljas](/author/per-liljas/) ## Per Liljas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 26, 2014 6:45 AM CUT  The Washington Monument, glimpsed on March 20—the first day of spring The Washington Monument, glimpsed on March 20—the first day of springAlex Wong—Getty Images by [Per Liljas](/author/per-liljas/) ## Per Liljas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 26, 2014 6:45 AM CUT After being closed for almost three years, the Washington Monument [will reopen](http://www.examiner.com/article/washington-monument-reopens-may-12-closed-32-months-to-repair-quake-damage "undefined") on May 12. The mighty obelisk has been under repair since Aug. 23, 2011, when a 5.8 magnitude earthquake caused more than 150 cracks in the structure. The last scaffolds will begin to come down this week. David M. Rubenstein, co-founder and co-CEO of the Carlyle Group and a prominent philanthropist, donated half of the $15 million repair bill. “The National Park Service (NPS) has done a spectacular job of repairing the monument, and I hope as many people as possible will soon be able to see the unique view from the top,” he said. NPS announced on Tuesday that the reopening ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. on May 12, with public tours commencing three hours later. \[[Examiner](http://www.examiner.com/article/washington-monument-reopens-may-12-closed-32-months-to-repair-quake-damage "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/38177/washington-monument-reopens-may-12/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/38177/washington-monument-reopens-may-12/"},"headline":"After Years of Repairs, the Washington Monument Will Reopen in May","datePublished":"2014-03-26T06:45:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T06:57:59.372Z","description":"The earthquake-damaged obelisk is finally back in shape","url":"https://time.com/38177/washington-monument-reopens-may-12/","keywords":["Earthquake"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4183cded1b4e6902/69868744cd804d5e09cc9ed4/479736835.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Per Liljas","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/per-liljas/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4183cded1b4e6902/69868744cd804d5e09cc9ed4/479736835.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"First Day Of Spring Arrives After Extremely Harsh Winter","caption":"First Day Of Spring Arrives After Extremely Harsh Winter","creditText":"Alex Wong—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/38177/washington-monument-reopens-may-12/","name":"After Years of Repairs, the Washington Monument Will Reopen in May"}}]}] ```