It's National Jerky Day, the publicists have decreed, and here in New York City you can observe it in front of this Mt. Rushmore replica in Columbus Circle. Just as our forefathers would have wanted, the replica is 13-foot tall, 17-foot wide, and covered in more than 1,600 pounds of Jack Link’s beef, pork and turkey jerky. It is nothing short of a miracle that National Jerky Day landed on a day that's not too hot, humid, or sunny. Behold, Meat Rushmore:

Columbus Circle. Meat Rushmore. Deeply disturbing. pic.twitter.com/TzU6ua0spN
— Clay (@claykaledin) June 12, 2014

And yes, the meat sculpture is a massive waste of food, but way more "viral" than handing out jerky to the homeless. A rep for the jerky company told us when the party's over it could stay on the East Coast "if there are any takers, or we will send back to Jack Link's HQ." We also asked why the jerky was being wasted on a meat sculpture instead of that other thing people do with food (no, not competitive eating). We'll update if we hear back. Update: A rep tells us, "Meat Rushmore was made by product that was not suitable for sale and did not meet our quality standards for public consumption. Jack Link's donates product to charitable causes nationwide." So feel free to take a guilt-free selfie with this thing.

It will be on view until 6 p.m., or whenever the rats get a whiff of it.