A statue of
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
* lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo
* es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón
* pt, Cristóvão Colombo
* ca, Cristòfor (or )
* la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...
was installed in
Pioneer Park,
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
.
History
The statue was placed in the park in 1957, donated by the city's
Italian-American
Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, w ...
community. The statue itself was sculpted by Count Vittorio di Colbertaldo (1902-1979) of
Verona
Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...
, one of
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
's hand picked ceremonial bodyguards known as the "Black Musketeers."
Colbertaldo doubled as the Musketeers's sculptor, producing statues which commemorated the organization.
The statue in Pioneer Park was cast in
Verona
Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...
and then shipped to San Francisco. A
second Columbus statue done by Colbertaldo is in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
's
Bayfront Park
Bayfront Park is a public, urban park in Downtown Miami, Florida on Biscayne Bay. The Chairman to the trust is Ary Shaeban. Located in the park is a bronze statue of Christopher Columbus sculpted by Count Vittorio di Colbertaldo of Verona, one ...
.
Vandalism and removal
In 2019, the statue was doused in red paint as an act of protest. The restoration cost about $70,000.
On June 18, 2020, the
San Francisco Arts Commission
The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) is the City agency that champions the arts as essential to daily life by investing in a vibrant arts community, enlivening the urban environment and shaping innovative cultural policy in San Francisco, Cali ...
(SFAC) removed the statue following the removal of other controversial statues during the
George Floyd protests
The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internati ...
. Rachelle Axel of the SFAC has said that the statue was removed as it "doesn't align with San Francisco's values or our commitment to racial justice" and in light of recent threats on social media to throw the statue off Pier 31 and into the
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland.
San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...
.
Further, it was put forward that Columbus is not an appropriate historic symbol to the area or to the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
because he never set foot on the respective soils. After its removal the statue was put in storage for preservation and possible relocation.
See also
*
Statue of Christopher Columbus (Miami)
*
List of monuments and memorials to Christopher Columbus
This is a list of monuments and memorials to Christopher Columbus.
Holidays
* Argentina
** The holiday was changed from ''El día de la Raza'' (The Day of the Race) (1916) to "Day of Respect of Cultural Diversity" in 2010.
* Colombia
** ' ...
*
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christopher Columbus (San Francisco)
1957 works
Monuments and memorials in California
Monuments and memorials removed during the George Floyd protests
North Beach, San Francisco
Outdoor sculptures in San Francisco
Relocated buildings and structures in California
Sculptures of men in California
Statues in San Francisco
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
Statues removed in 2020
Vandalized works of art in California