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The columned structure in Central Park is part of the park’s old pergola and colonnade, designed to be more than decoration. The Olmsted plan used it as a visual lure, drawing visitors into the park along shaded walks and planted paths. Historic photographs show the pergola and its Doric columns in place by the early 1900s, already serving as one of the park’s main architectural landmarks. What looks like a vaguely classical garden ornament is really one of the pieces that has been organizing how people move through Central Park for more than a century.