All things are words of some strange tongue, in thrall
To Someone, Something, who both day and night
Proceeds in endless gibberish to write
The history of the world. In that dark scrawl

Rome is set down, and Carthage, I. you, all,
And this my being which escapes me quite,
My anguished life that’s cryptic, recondite.
And garbled as the tongues of Babel’s fall.

Jorge Luis Borges (1921- 1986). "Compass" translated by Richard Wilbuur

[Gregg LeFevre Signature]

The Library Walk, is a venture launched in 1996 by the New York Public Library, Grand Central Partnership and New Yorker Magazine, in which are embedded in bronze plaques quotes from well-known books, or those dealing with books and literature. The panels designed by artist Gregg LeFevre were laid in 1998 from the New York Public Library building along 41st Street.

The plaque features a quote from the song "Compass" by Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges.

The background of the plaque is inlaid with compasses and "Compass roses" that match the name of the song