Like a real pencil, this one is ephemeral. Every year they sharpen it, it gets a bit shorter. They’ve taken anywhere from 3 to 10 inches (8 to 25 centimeters) off a year.

Residents will gather Saturday in a scenic Minneapolis neighborhood for an annual ritual — the sharpening of a gigantic No. 2 pencil. The 20-foot-tall (6-meter-tall) pencil was sculpted out of a ...

Instead, they called in an artist, who transformed the toppled oak into an instantly recognizable yellow No. 2 pencil. The 20-foot-tall wooden sculpture has become a beloved landmark in Minneapolis.