Overview
- The U.S. Army confirmed the globe was damaged during a relocation attempt on Feb. 3, 2026, leaving a several-inch hole near the Antarctic area and detaching the sphere from its metal mount.
- Reporting says Hegseth’s office bypassed the U.S. Army Center of Military History curators and used its own staff, and sources told The Washington Post the workers lost control and dropped the globe.
- The Department of Defense described the episode as an accident and said the object will be repaired, while an unnamed Pentagon employee told AFP it was a reproduction and downplayed the incident.
- Unresolved questions include who expressly authorized the transfer, whether Hegseth personally ordered it, and whether the damaged object is an original Eisenhower globe or a later copy.
- The case has practical and reputational fallout: the Army holds two items labeled as Eisenhower globes, specialists say trained curators normally manage such moves, and the episode could prompt tighter rules on handling irreplaceable military artifacts.