News reports said other large artefacts from 'Ground Zero' will also be returned to the site as construction for the new World Trade Centre is progressing.

Joseph Daniels, president of the Sep 11 Memorial Foundation, was quoted as saying that artefacts like the steel column have 'tremendous emblematic meaning'.

'The last column represents all the effort by individuals that made this recovery effort unprecedented in American history,' Daniels said.

The US will mark the eight anniversary of the attacks next month in which more than 3,000 people died.