Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the

Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the

Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the Germans
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Author Teodor Rygier Date of production 1898 Place of creation Kraków, Poland Dimensions height: 40 cm, width: 27 cm ID no. MHK 3106/III/1­3 Museum Historical Museum of the City of Kraków Oddział Oscar Schindler's Factory Subjects city, war, sculpted, memory Technique casting, chiselling Material bronze Object copyright Historical Museum of the City of Kraków Digital images copyright public domain Digitalisation RDW MIC, Małopolska's Virtual Museums project Tags Kraków, wojna, pomnik, okupacja, II wojna światowa, Adam Mickiewicz, 2D, historia Three inconspicuously­looking fragments of the bronze sculpture: the head of an old man and the fragment of a hand and an arm are the elements of one of the most important 19th century monuments in Kraków — the monument commemorating the national bard, Adam Mickiewicz. The monument, erected in 1898 by the sculptor Teodor Rygier, was demolished by the German occupant in 1940 as a symbol of Polish statehood.
What largely contributed to the creation of the monument honouring the Romanticism poet were the preparations for the grand Kraków celebration of the re­burial of Adam Mickiewicz in the Wawel, lasting from the 1860s. Nonetheless, the origins of its history date back to 1869 when during the banquet organised in Lviv on the occasion of the lectures delivered by Karol Libelt, the historian Henryk Schmidt came up with the proposal of erecting the monument commemorating the three national bards: Adam Mickiewicz, Juliusz Słowacki and Zygmunt Krasiński. The then established monument committee began to raise funds all over the country. Unfortunately, the monument initiative did not meet a wide response and only three works were sent for the competition—the ones by Antoni Kurzawa and Wiktor Brodzki. Due to the difficult political situation and the lack of sufficient funds, the concept was not realised. The idea, however, was not completely abandoned. The students concentrated around the Krakow Czytelnia Akademicka (Academic Reading­Room) decided to erect the monument of Adam Mickiewicz in Kraków. Taking advantage of the celebrations of the jubilee of Józef Ignacy Kraszewski in 1879, they organised a ball in the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) in honour of the writer, the proceeds of which were allocated to the foundation of the monument commemorating Mickiewicz. The idea met with great interest in Kraków and resulted in the establishment of the social monument committee headed by the sculptor Paweł Popiel. In 1881 the first public “preparatory” competition was announced; however, the committee did not grant the right for the realisation of the winning project. From among many drawings and sculpture designs, the jury chose the work by Tomasz Dykas, a decision which sparked numerous controversies.
Also, the painting concept by Jan Mateko was met with high acclaim. Two years later another competition called the “definitive” one was announced. And again, the committee selected the project by Dykas and, simultaneously, asked Matejko to make the plaster model on the basis of the drawing design which the artist had sent for the competition. Unfortunately, the majority of the models presented during the competition were met with strong criticism and no project was selected to be realised. At the “final” competition in 1888, the jury selected the project by Cyprian Godebski and Albert Bitner. However, to the surprise of the public, the committee eventually chose the second awarded work by the academic sculptor Teodor Rygier, who lived and worked in Rome. The design in the form of a conventional 19th­
century monument was composed of the full­figure statue of the bard in his youth placed on the architectural plinth. The plinth was surrounded by four allegorical groups of figures representing the Homeland, Science, Poetry and Bravery. It was also decorated with the inscription: “To Adam Mickiewicz, the Nation.”
Although the competition was over, a stormy discussion concerning the form of the monument continued. Therefore, upon the request of the committee, the artist introduced numerous corrections to his design, e.g. changing the figure of the young poet into the statue of a mature bard wearing a laurel wreath on his head. Rygier commissioned the casts of the figures decorating the plinth to the Nellich foundry in Rome. Another controversy was connected with the location of the monument. Hence, in 1889, after signing the contract with the author of the winning design, the committee executed a wooden model in a natural scale, which subsequently toured “different nooks and crossroads” of Kraków in search for the perfect location, “to the delight of large masses of people”, as the magazine Architekt (Architect) commented. Before the monument was eventually placed in the Main Market Square, the committee returned several times to the concept of locating the structure in Adam Mickiewicz Square in front of the newly built Collegium Novum, or in the square at the Planty garden ring at the end of Sławkowska Street. The works on the monument lasted many years. As early as 1892 the granite pedestal was placed in the Main Market Square. The timbered structure sparked protests from residents for many years. Eventually, the unveiling of the monument was held on the 100th anniversary of the bard’s birthday on 26 June 1898 in the presence of his daughter and son and important personages of Kraków. By erecting the monument, the residents of Kraków commemorated the Romanticism poet, the eulogist of Polish statehood and the concept of the 19th­century patriotism. Nonetheless, the monument designed by Rygier still sparked controversies and numerous highly critical opinions appeared in the press. Despite all this, over the years the work integrated into the city scenery, becoming one of the most important Krakow monuments.
Between 17 and 21 August 1940, the Germans who occupied the city conducted the action of demolishing the monument, which was the symbol of Polish statehood. The figures were thrown down, only to crash on the Main Market Square flagstone; the plinth was blown up. Initially, it was thought that the destroyed monument had been melted down; however, in 1946 almost all of its fragments were found in a scrap yard in Hamburg, thanks to which the monument was reconstructed by sculptor Stanisław Popławski and ceremoniously unveiled on 26 November 1995 on the 100th anniversary of the bard’s death.
Since 1958 the three preserved fragments of the original monument have been kept in the collection at the Historical Museum of the City of Kraków. These include the head of the old man from the allegorical group, “Science”; the hand with a broken chisel used to write, being a fragment of the figure “Homeland” as well as an element of the arm belonging to an unidentified figure. The museum collection also stores numerous photographs depicting the action of demolishing the monument in 1940.
Elaborated by Elżbieta Lang (Historical Museum of the City of Kraków), © all rights reserved
“After Grunwald and Kościuszko, it was Mickiewicz’s turn”
17 August 1940: “After Grunwald and Kościuszko, it was Mickiewicz's turn. Vandals furiously attacked the monument of the bard standing in the Main Market Square. In broad daylight at noon tools and lifts were brought in and all the figures were thrown off the pedestal—as if with some hidden passion or provocation.“ (Edward Kubalski, Niemcy w Krakowie. Dziennik 1 IX 1939−18 I 1945 [Germans in Kraków. Diary, 1 September 1939 – 18 January 1945], Kraków The Demolishment of the Adam Mickiewicz 2010)
Monument by the Germans, Kraków, August The spectacular destruction of the monument 1940. Property of the Kraków Photography resulted in anger even among those residents Division of the Historical Museum of the City of Kraków who were not fully convinced of Kraków, Inv. no. MHK­Fn2567/IX
about its appearance or did not attach particular importance to its existence. In those days, the monument became the national symbol: “surely not everyone was aware of who Mickiewicz really was. They came to understand him only after he had been thrown from the monument. This is when he entered their hearts. The monument fell down larger than when it had stood,“ recalled Zygmunt Nowakowski. (Z. Nowakowski, Mój Kraków i inne wspomnienia [My Kraków and Other Memories], Warsaw 1994).
“17 August 1940: Crowds were standing around the police cordon, women were crying loudly. They were dispelled from time to time; numerous photographers that were gathered on the spot were beaten and arrested. This action, exactly like many other actions conducted by the occupant, turned out to be pointless, as two days later Kraków was in possession of over a dozen photos of the falling monument, and boys gathered at the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) approached people inspiring their trust and sold the photos: «Of Mickiewicz, who fell down» […] A peaceful Krakow was deeply shattered—it was the first time when common people, who were initially clearly impressed by the Germans, became really «enraged»“
(Karolina Lanckorońska, Wspomnienia wojenne 22 IX 1939−5 IV 1945 [War Memoirs 22 September 1935–5 April 1945], Kraków 2001)
According to Kubalski, the destruction of the Mickiewicz monument was an element of preparation for the visit of Adolf Hitler to Kraków, which was planned either on 1 September or on 14 October. The visit, however, never took place. In a broader context, the action was yet another step, and definitely not the last one, to demonstrate the power of the occupant, to show disdain for Polish national symbols and gradually transform Kraków into a German city.
Elaborated by Kinga Kołodziejska (Editorial team of Małopolska's Virtual Museums), CC­BY 3.0 PL See: Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the Germans
Tags: Kraków, The Historical Museum of the City of Kraków, photography, World War II, monument, Adam Mickiewicz, occupation Jak mógł wyglądać pomnik Adama Mickiewicza? O kulisach konkursu
Choć Kraków nie figuruje na mapie miast, w których przebywał Adam Mickiewicz, to jednak właśnie tu, w najbardziej centralnym punkcie, stanął pomnik poety. Dziś jego obecność wydaje się oczywista, ale jego powstaniu towarzyszyły gorące dyskusje i spory. Sam pomysł narodził się 14 lat po śmierci poety − w 1869 roku, kiedy za sprawą prezydenta Krakowa Józefa Dietla rozpoczęto zbieranie składek.
W 1881 roku ogłoszono konkurs przygotowawczy, w 1882 w Sukiennicach zaprezentowano publicznie 26 szkiców konkursowych. Co ciekawe, ich autorzy przykładali większą wagę do postaci alegorycznych towarzyszących Mickiewiczowi niż do samego wizerunku poety.
Jury, w którym znaleźli się m.in. Jan Matejko, Wojciech Gerson, Marian Sokołowski, Władysław Łuszczkiewicz i Jan Zacharyasiewicz, przyznało pierwszą nagrodę Tomaszowi Dykasowi za projekt Spłoszona kraska, który przedstawiał poetę w towarzystwie czterech postaci alegorycznych: Narodowości Polskiej, Geniusza, Historii i Poezji.
Werdykt komisji konkursowej wywołał falę krytyki. Henryk Struve pisał w „Kłosach” w 1882 roku:
„Projekt nagrodzony uderza swoją trywialnością. Nie napotykamy w nim żadnego rysu charakteryzującego poetę i jego narodową doniosłość. Jest to rzecz akademicko pomyślana [operująca] szablonowymi proporcjami”.
Wobec wątpliwości, w 1884 roku zdecydowano o ogłoszeniu nowego konkursu, w którym doprecyzowano warunki udziału projektów − pomnik przedstawiający poetę jako postać dominującą miał stanąć na płycie Rynku Głównego i jako taki wpisywać się w architekturę miejsca.
Tym razem wpłynęło 31 propozycji — nie były to tylko szkice, a gipsowe modele. Był też wyjątek, po zamknięciu konkursu wpłynął szkic Jana Matejki. Werdykt jury zaskoczył ponownie. Głosami komisji zwyciężył... Tomasz Dykas — zwycięzca poprzedniego konkursu. Złośliwi spekulowali, że stało się tak dlatego, że w skład zespołu oceniającego wchodził nauczyciel rzeźbiarza, Klemens Carl Zumbusch. Podnoszono także inny argument: być może zdecydowała nie tyle prostota i doskonałość wykonania, ile stosunkowo niskie koszty realizacji (co w Krakowie zawsze jest ważne).
Dziatki pijące ze zdroju poezji
Jak wyglądał nowy Mickiewicz, który miał wpisać się w krakowski krajobraz?
U stóp poety, na cokole autor umieścił dzieci nad muszlą, z której płynęła woda (miało być to alegoryczne przedstawienie zdroju poezji). Muszla nie zyskała jednak przychylnych opinii − bardziej odpowiedni, w ocenie komisji, wydawał się krater lub... pozłacana urna.
Doceniony artysta, nie mógł jednak długo cieszyć się swoim sukcesem, w kwietniu 1885 roku niespodziewanie ogłoszono, że nagrodzony projekt nie zostanie zrealizowany, a kwestie pomnika przejmie Jan Matejko. Tym razem Mickiewicz miał zasiadać na krześle, u jego stóp miała znaleźć się personifikacja Geniusza, który zrywał pęta z orła. Dodatkowo na cokole miały pojawić się alegorie Wisły i Niemna. Rok po wydaniu decyzji o zaniechaniu realizacji koncepcji Dykasa otwarto wystawę modeli Teodora Rygiera i Walerego Gadomskiego opartych na szkicach Matejki (w prasie znów pojawiały się nieprzychylne opinie, zarzuty dotyczące zbytniej teatralności, mieszania romantycznych dziwactw). Pojawił się także wątek obyczajowy − protesty wywołała obnażona figura Mickiewicza. Głos zabrała nawet córka poety, powołując się na niechęć wieszcza wobec nagich postaci, wieńczonych dodatkowo laurem. Wobec kolejnej fali protestów i nieprzychylnych głosów w 1886 roku rozpisano nowy otwarty konkurs, jego finalizacja trwała dwa lata. Tym razem wyróżniono projekt Cypriana Godebskiego, doceniając także (druga i trzecia nagroda) prace Teodora Rygiera i Walerego Gadomskiego. Również w tym przypadku nie obyło się bez niespodzianek. Górę wzięły względy ekonomiczne. Realizacja zwycięskiego projektu okazała się niemożliwa. Za sprawą Jana Matejki wybrano projekt Rygiera − jednak nie ten wyróżniony, a inny, któremu wcześniej komisja nie poświęciła zbyt wiele uwagi.
Ostatecznie Rygier w trakcie prac modyfikował pierwotny zamysł.
Na uwagę zasługuje również procedura wyboru lokalizacji. Komisja zleciła wykonanie gipsowego modelu, który miał być obwożony po skwerach Krakowa tak długo, aż będzie idealnie współgrał z architekturą otoczenia.
Mickiewicz... jako wódz indiański
Pomnik, który stanął w 1894 roku tradycyjnie już doczekał się fali komentarzy krytycznych i satyrycznych, które z powodu wieńca laurowego na głowie poety porównywały rzeźbę wieszcza do... indiańskiego wodza (w umieszczeniu tej dekoracji Rygierowi nie przeszkodziła wyrażana wcześniej przez córkę poety niechęć wieszcza do lauru).
By zadowolić oponentów, rzeźbiarz musiał powtórnie przygotować figury Mickiewicza i personifikacji Nauki i Patriotyzmu.
Pomnik w obecnym kształcie odsłonięto w 1898 roku (w 100. rocznicę urodzin poety). Od pomysłu do realizacji upłynęło 29 lat, były to lata kolejnych konkursów, dyskusji i sporów, a także nieoczekiwanych pozaregulaminowych zwrotów akcji, które mogłyby posłużyć za kanwę filmu czy poczytnej powieści.
Świadomość tego, że pomnik ma być równie wielki jak poezja, która urosła do rangi narodowego mitu, dążenie do tego, by odpowiedni dać rzeczy (w tym wypadku słowu) obraz, przytłoczyła zarówno organizatorów, jak i realizatorów tego przedsięwzięcia. Dziś, stojąc pod pomnikiem Mickiewicza, trudno odtworzyć dawną temperaturę sporów − to, co kontrowersyjne, z czasem stało się oczywiste.
Zobacz:
Fragmenty pomnika Adama Mickiewicza zburzonego przez Niemców
Fotografię „Rynek Główny, uroczystość z okazji ponownego postawienia pomnika Adama Mickiewicza” Edwarda Węglowskiego Opracowanie: Redakcja WMM, CC­BY 3.0 PL
Bibliografia:
Waldemar Okoń, O krakowskim pomniku Adama Mickiewicza raz jeszcze, „Quart” (2006), nr 1, s. 18–31.
Tags: monument, Adam Mickiewicz, Jan Matejko, Museum of History of Photography in Kraków “Proto­German” city of Krakau
Kraków remained under German occupation for 1961 days—5 years, from 6 September 1939 to 18 January 1945. Traces of the German past of the city can still be found in its space: air­raid shelters under today's Inwalidów Square, signs on townhouses and the townhouses themselves, as well as museum exhibits. Having entered Kraków on 6 September 1939, the Germans immediately began to implement their policy into practice. According to the plan, Kraków was to become a German city, the capital of the General Government, Franconia. The destruction of national monuments and state symbols was an element of the wide­ranging campaign aimed at a total Germanisation of the city space; it was also designed to show its residents who really had the power. Officially, a change of the city name into the German “Krakau“ took place no sooner than December 1941; however, this name had already been used in documents. The change was the crowning of their master plan, a symbolical seal of the transformation of Kraków into a “proto­German“ city.
Elaborated by Kinga Kołodziejska (Editorial team of Małopolska's Virtual Museums), CC­BY 3.0 PL
See also:
Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the Germans
Fragments of the Grunwald Monument demolished by the Germans
Tags: Kraków, The Historical Museum of the City of Kraków, World War II, occupation From a matchbox to the Adam Mickiewicz monument
The monument to Mickiewicz which was unveiled in Krakow in 1889 was not the only honour given to the poet after his death. Over the 34 years that passed since the 26th of November 1855 (the date of his death), the poet's body and his person, reproduced in depictions and photographs, was idealised. With time, it became less and less similar to the original. It entered the sphere of myth and interpretation.
Mickiewicz died in Constantinople; his friends kept watch over his body and saw to it that all duties were fulfilled. A death mask of his face was cast (the original of which has since disappeared), a sketch was made and two photographs were taken. Then his body was embalmed and sealed in three coffins, which were secured for transport. According to some theories, this was an attempt to conceal the probable cause of death – cholera, which would have damaged the poet's image (with cholera, even the remains of the deceased had to be isolated).
At first, he was buried in Montmorency, France. However, for many it became a priority to bring the remains of the poet back to his country. This entailed a high cost and the need to obtain funding. Simultaneously, people began to raise money to build a monument to Adam Mickiewicz in Kraków. A permit to hold a public collection was issued as late as 1888. This accelerated the process of obtaining the required amount.
After the exhumation in Montmorency, gravediggers cut the useless zinc coffin into small pieces and made very practical souvenirs of them – souvenirs that were sold as relics ...
Over the years, the popularity of objects with the image of Mickiewicz grew. His image could even be found on matchboxes and packages of toilet soap (available in two versions: as camomile or heather Tatra soap). Cigarettes also appeared on the market with the inscription “Souvenir from Kraków, 1890,” and the image of the poet on the mouthpiece ... As Stanislaw Rosiek says in his work Zwłoki Mickiewicza (Mickiewicz's corpse), the poet's cult knew no bounds or even good taste.
In 1890, the remains of the poet were reinterred in a solemn procession to Wawel Hill. Mickiewicz entered the stage in a laurel wreath, covered in glory.
After the ceremony, a special tableau created for this occasion appeared, containing pictures of the funeral procession accompanying the transfer of the remains, a fragment of the coffin and of the rope ...
The monument, which was erected at the Main Market Square in Kraków, was unveiled in 1898. Members of the judging panel and authors of monument designs had had to face not only the personality of the poet and his work, but also notions about Mickiewicz and a kind of veneration of the poet after his death. Therefore, it is not surprising that so many years had passed from the concept to its realisation.
Source: Stanisław Rosiek, Zwłoki Mickiewicza, Słowo/obraz terytoria, Gdańsk 1997.
Elaborated by the editorial team of Małopolska’s Virtual Museums, CC­BY 3.0 PL
See also:
Fragments of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument demolished by the Germans
Photograph “
Main Market Square, ceremony to celebrate Adam Mickiewicz monument re­erection
”
Tags: The Historical Museum of the City of Kraków, photography, monument, Adam Mickiewicz, death, mask, Main Square, Museum of History of Photography in Kraków, relics, cult