A Vulcan Salute Monument to honor Leonard Nimoy is coming to Boston

In honor of Leonard Nimoy and his love of Boston and dedication to the truth behind the “Live Long and Prosper” symbol, the Museum of Science, which is one of the world’s largest science centers and a popular attraction for tourists is developing a monument, in collaboration with Leonard Nimoy’s family, that will be placed at the front of the museum at Science Park.

The illuminated stainless steel monument will be 20-feet tall and designed by David Phillips, who is an award-winning artist, and it will be in the shape of the hand gesture Spock made popular so many years ago. With the announcement of the monument today, Nimoy’s daughter, Julie said that the “Live Long and Prosper” symbol represented a message that her father believed strongly in.

"“My dad always loved Boston and he would be honored knowing that the Museum of Science would be the permanent home to this memorial. The sculpture not only depicts one of the world’s most recognized and loved gestures for peace, tolerance, and diversity, but it will also be a beautiful tribute to my dad’s life and legacy.”"

Nimoy grew up only a few blocks from the Museum of Science and remained committed to his immigrant roots. He talked often about his childhood in the West End and never forgot where her came from.

Tim Ritchie president of the Museum of Science said that Nimoy lifted aspirations and hopes through his commitment to science, intellectual curiosity, generosity, and logic, adding that Nimoy also reminded us about the best part of humanity.

".”…and gave us a vision for building a society based on reason and tolerance. The opportunity to pay tribute to him is a great honor and what better day to make this announcement than on what would have been his 90th birthday.”"

Leonard Nimoy’s family and the Museum of Science will work together to develop the Leonard Nimoy memorial sculpture, and part of that work will involve fundraising to complete the project. If you’re interested in donating to the fund that will help build this monument, you can visit the Museum of Science Boston’s official site.

The Vulcan hand gesture, which the New York Times described as a double-fingered version of Churchill’s victory sign, has become popular among all Star Trek actors. It’s not unusual to see them using the sign in public images. The symbol is so popular that its emoji character was added in June 2014. So it’s perfectly fitting this would be the symbol used to represent Leonard Nimoy’s life and legacy.