Victims of Terrorist Attack on the Pentagon Memorial

The Victims of Terrorist Attack on the Pentagon Memorial is a memorial site in Arlington County, Virginia, featuring 184 granite benches that each carry a name and rest above a shallow pool of water. The benches stand in parallel rows, forming an open space that keeps the Washington skyline visible in the background.

On September 11, 2001, a hijacked aircraft struck the Pentagon, taking the lives of 184 people, including crew, passengers, and employees inside the building. The memorial opened in 2008 to honor each victim individually and preserve the memory of that day.

Each bench bears the name of a victim and aligns according to the person's birth year, placing the youngest and oldest victims side by side. The arrangement creates a quiet dialogue across generations, guiding visitors through different life spans.

The site is open daily around the clock and lies near the Pentagon building, with parking and walkways leading to the entrance. Visitors can move freely among the benches and read the inscriptions at their own pace, with the place quietest in the mornings and evenings.

Each bench is oriented so that the direction you face while reading a name reveals the victim's position at the moment of the attack: facing the Pentagon means reading the name of someone inside, facing away means reading the name of a passenger. This spatial solution makes the two groups visible without using words.