Where in the Hudson Valley? A Giant Fish Made of Kitchen Utensils

Somewhere in the Hudson Valley there's an enormous fish made almost entirely out of old forks, knives and spoons.

There are plenty of unusual things hiding in plain sight throughout the Hudson Valley, but this may be one of the strangest.

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The massive metal creature is 12 feet long, weighs 360 pounds and contains roughly 1,700 pieces of silverware. And for ten years it's been overlooking one of the most prestigious schools in the country.

Giant Fish Hiding on Hyde Park Campus

The sculpture is called "Old Diamondsides" and can be found on the Hyde Park campus of the Culinary Institute of America.

It's located in the courtyard near Ristorante Caterina de’ Medici, the CIA's Italian restaurant.

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Artist John F. Sendelbach began working on the unusual sculpture in 2014 after researching the history and ecology of Hyde Park and the Hudson River.

He discovered that the area was once an important spawning ground for Atlantic sturgeon. Hyde Park was also home to an important fishery landing during the 19th century. The fish earned the nickname "diamondsides" because of the diamond-shaped bony plates, called scutes, that cover its body.

That history became the inspiration for the enormous metal fish.

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More Than 1,700 Forks, Knives and Spoons

According to a plaque beneath the sculpture, Sendelbach spent more than 300 hours fabricating Old Diamondsides.

Approximately 700 knives, 400 forks and 600 spoons were used to create the 12-foot sturgeon. Its eyes aren't silverware, however. Those were handmade from glass by artist Jeremy Sinkus.

The finished sculpture was officially unveiled at the CIA on May 13, 2015. At the time, the school said it was designed to honor a fish that once played an important role in both the ecology and economy of the Hudson River.

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More than a decade later, Old Diamondsides is still there, and it's easy to see why the sculpture feels so perfectly at home at the Culinary Institute.