The Statue of Erasmus is a public monument by

Hendrick de Keyser Hendrick de Keyser (15 May 1565 – 15 May 1621) was a Dutch sculptor, merchant in Belgium bluestone, and architect who was instrumental in establishing a late Renaissance form of Mannerism changing into Baroque. Most of his works appeared in Amst ...

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

History

Earlier statues in wood and stone

The succession of statues dedicated to

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' w ...

is testimony to the civic pride he elicited in his native city. A first statue is mentioned by early-17C printer Matthijs Bastiaensz as having been sent in 1536, the year of Erasmus's death, by the civic leaders of

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

where he died, but is not otherwise attested. A wooden statue was erected on the occasion of Philip of Habsburg's princely visit in Rotterdam on 27 1549. It played a specific role in the visit's choreography. The statue was hollow and enabled a young boy to stay inside. As Philip approached, the boy recited a Latin poem, making it appear as if Erasmus himself was praising the visitor. In 1557 a more durable statue of Erasmus was made in Belgian blue stone. In 1572, during the War of Holland, Spanish troops under Count of Bossu threw the statue into a canal. It was later recovered and placed on the ''Grotemarkt''.

The bronze statue

On 18 April 1616, the City of Rotterdam decided to commission a new statue, following a recommendation from Hugo Grotius who had become Pensionary of the city in 1613.

, who in 1614 had received the commission for the tomb of

William the Silent William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Re ...

in Delft, was selected and contracted on 29 August 1618. The statue was cast after his death on 5 May 1621 by local founder Jan Cornelisz. , under supervision by Hendrick's son

Pieter de Keyser Pieter de Keyser (c.1595 – 15 September 1676 (buried)) was a Dutch Golden Age architect (''bouwmeester'') and sculptor. He followed in the footsteps of his father Hendrick de Keyser and completed a number of Hendrick de Keyser's buildings a ...

. The statue was eventually erected on 30 April 1622. Its cost exceeded 10,000

guilders Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' "gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman Emp ...

, a very large sum for a work of art. It was originally gilded, but soon took a green patina.

Joost van den Vondel Joost van den Vondel (; 17 November 1587 – 5 February 1679) was a Dutch poet, writer and playwright. He is considered the most prominent Dutch poet and playwright of the 17th century. His plays are the ones from that period that are still mos ...

wrote a poem about it that same year, titled ''To the splendid metal statue in Rotterdam erected in honour of the great Erasmus''. It was the first public statue in bronze in the Netherlands, and unique in Europe as it honored an intellectual luminary rather than a military or political leader. Erasmus is depicted as a theologian, reading a large

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

. Local legend has it that Erasmus turns a page of the book every hour at the stroke of the clock.

Later developments

In 1674, the statue was deposed for repairs as it was at risk of falling over. It was re-erected on 22 April 1677. The current pedestal is a modern copy of the one that was created on this occasion. It displays two inscriptions in Latin. The first quote, by writer and illustrator Joachim Oudaan (1628-1692), reads: DESIDERIO ERASMO / MAGNO SCIENTIARVM ATQUE LITTERATVRAE / POLITIORIS VINDICI ET INSTAVRATORI / VIRO SAECVLI SVI PRIMARIO / CIVI OMNIVM PRAESTANTISSIMO / AC NOMINIS IMMORTALITATEM SCRIPTIS / AEVITERNIS IVRE CONSECVTO / S.P.Q. ROTERODAMVS / NE QVOD TANTIS APVD SE / SVOSQVE POSTEROS / VIRTVTIBVS PRAEMIVM DEESSET / STATVAM HANC EX AERE PVBLICO / ERIGENDAM CVRAVERUNT. The second quote, by

Nicolaas Heinsius the Elder Nicolaas Heinsius the Elder ( la, Nicolaus Heinsius; 20 July 1620 – 7 October 1681) was a Dutch classical scholar, poet and diplomat. He travelled all over Europe to visit the major libraries and over time collected Europe's largest priva ...

, reads: BARBARIAE TALEM SE DEBELLATOR ERASMVS / MAXIMA LAVS BATAVI NOMINIS ORE TVLIT / REDDIDIT EN FATIS ARS OBLVCTATA SINISTRIS / DE TANTO SPOLIVM NACTA QVOD VRNA VIRO EST / INGENII COELESTE IVBAR MAIVSQVE CADVCO / TEMPORE QVI REDDAT SOLVS ERASMVS ERIT. It was hit by cannon from

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

's troops in 1810. In 1940 ahead of the

German invasion German invasion may refer to: Pre-1900s * German invasion of Hungary (1063) World War I * German invasion of Belgium (1914) * German invasion of Luxembourg (1914) World War II * Invasion of Poland * German invasion of Belgium (1940) * G ...

, the statue was moved to a protected location, buried under the courtyard of the

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen Municipal Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen () is an art museum in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The name of the museum is derived from the two most important collectors of Frans Jacob Otto Boijmans and Daniël George van Beuningen. It is located a ...

. On 29 July 1945 it was re-erected, intact, on

Coolsingel Coolsingel is a street in central Rotterdam. It is located in the Cool district. The street leads from the Hofplein to the Churchillplein. Plans were announced in 2016 to reduce traffic congestion on the street. The redevelopment is expected to ...

; it was moved to its current location in 1964. It was listed as a Rijksmonument on 11 September 1973. The statue was torn down by vandals in 1996 but did not suffer major damage. It was subsequently repaired and re-erected on 29 January 1998.

Erasmus Monument

In October 2016, a separate Erasmus monument was unveiled nearby, on the site of the house where Erasmus was born in 1466 (according to current scholarly consensus). It evokes the disappeared house's facade and is covered with blue-and-wide tiles that evoke Erasmus and his works.

Notes

{{RefList Statues in the Netherlands Buildings and structures in Rotterdam Bronze sculptures in the Netherlands 1622 sculptures