Title: Adam Mickiewicz Monument''' in Kraków, Poland
Description: Adam Mickiewicz Monument in Kraków, (Polish: pomnik Adama Mickiewicza w Krakowie), is one of the best known bronze monuments in Poland, and a favourite meeting place at the Main Market Square in the Old Town (Stare Miasto) district of Kraków. The statue of Adam Mickiewicz, the greatest Polish Romantic poet of the 19th century, was unveiled on June 16, 1898, on the 100th anniversary of his birth, in the presence of his daughter and son. It was designed by Teodor Rygier, a little-known sculptor at the time, who won the third and final competition for this project by popular demand ahead of over 60 artists in total, the renowned painter Jan Matejko included. Even though the first prize was awarded to famed Cyprian Godebski, professor at the Imperial Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg from Paris, with Rygier at a close second, for the final execution a more popular design by Rygier was accepted with a contract signed in November 1889. At the poet's feet are four allegoric groups symbolising the Motherland (from the face of the monument along Sienna Street), Science (facing north), Courage (facing Sukiennice Hall) and Poetry (facing Church of St. Wojciech, south). The inscription on the pedestal reads: "To Adam Mickiewicz, the Nation".
Author(s): Rygier, Teodor