Gilgal Sculpture Garden is one of the most curious attractions in Salt Lake City. Part sculpture garden and part park, this Downtown Salt Lake City attraction was the vision and creation of a single man who wanted to honor and create a collection of monuments to the Mormon beliefs first and foremost. Scattered throughout the park are a dozen original sculptures and more than 70 stones that are engraved with texts, poems, and scriptures that largely relate to the Mormon faith. One of the most significant pieces that is on display at the Gilgal Gardens is a sculpture of the Sphinx with the head of Mormon founder Joseph Smith.

The Gilgal Sculpture Garden is a small park, and since it is tucked away behind buildings and houses, it often gets overlooked, even by locals. However, this park is iconic and is an attraction so unique that it is worth seeing. The exact location is 749 East 500 South, which is relatively close to the downtown area where you can check out Temple Square and the Family History Library as well. Once you find this sculpture garden, you'll know that you've arrived. Sculptures and engraved rocks are strewn about in good supply, making the park stand out from the other city parks. In addition to the statue of the Sphinx with the head of Joseph Smith, visitors to the Gilgal Gardens can also check out a stone sculpture of a Mormon cricket, a statue that interprets the dream that King Nebuchadnezzar had in the Book of Daniel, and a statue of the park founder Thomas Child. This interesting outdoor museum and sculpture garden in Salt Lake City offers plenty for the visitor to enjoy, and thanks to its rather weird appeal, more and more visitors are stopping by to see what's on display.

Thomas Child was a masonry contractor, and he started work on the Gilgal Sculpture Garden in 1945 at the age of 57. Until his death in 1963, Child continued to develop the park, honoring the LDS faith and his own personal beliefs on the whole. Helping him along the way was his son-in-law, Bryant Higgs, and a skilled sculptor by the name of Maurice Edmund Brooks. Brooks, it should be noted, carved many of the features on the pieces that can be found at the Gilgal Sculpture Garden. He also had a hand in the making of the Mormon Battalion Monument, which can be found on the grounds of the State Capitol Building.

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Eccentric is a word that could be used to describe the collection of relics that can be found at the Gilgal Sculpture Garden, and since it doesn't cost anything to enjoy this collection, dropping by for a look at some point is recommended while hanging out in the Utah capital. You could easily spend a couple minutes or an hour or more at this fascinating sculpture garden in Salt Lake City, and if nothing else, you might do a walk-through while enjoying a downtown walking tour. From April to September, the Gilgal Gardens are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Between October and March, the hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bring your camera along!