A statue of Mihai Eminescu in

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, Romania, is located at 2 Carol I Boulevard, in front of the

Central University Library of Iași The Mihai Eminescu Central University Library of Iași ( ro, Biblioteca Centrală Universitară "Mihai Eminescu" Iași) is a library that serves the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University and the entire university and academic community in Iași, Romania ...

Background

In 1924, the Popular Athenaeum of the Toma Cozma Church began raising funds for a statue of poet

Mihai Eminescu Mihai Eminescu (; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 – 15 June 1889) was a Romanian Romantic poet from Moldavia, novelist, and journalist, generally regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet. Eminescu was an active membe ...

. After collecting 1.5 million lei, a committee was formed to choose a design. Two competitions held in 1927 failed to produce a finalist, despite receiving entries from accomplished artists. A third attempt, held in 1928 under the leadership of Mihail Sadoveanu, resulted in the selection of Czech-Romanian sculptor

Ion Schmidt-Faur An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conven ...

‘s model. Completed in late 1928, the statue was unveiled in 1929, the 40th anniversary of Eminescu’s death.Iftimi, pp. 537-38 The work was originally placed at the entrance to the University of Iași, where a statue of

Alexandru Dimitrie Xenopol Alexandru Dimitrie Xenopol (; March 23, 1847, Iaşi – February 27, 1920, Bucharest) was a Romanian historian, philosopher, professor, economist, sociologist, and author. Among his many major accomplishments, he is the Romanian historian cred ...

now stands. Artistically, the result is not considered out of the ordinary. It has been suggested that the poet’s overwhelming character inhibited sculptors’ inspiration, especially during that period. Other contemporary efforts faithfully reproduce his face, but are artificial and lack expression.

Description

The backers stipulated that Eminescu had to be depicted at age 30. Thus, the sculptor drew from later portraits, neglecting the photograph of the youthful Eminescu that has since become classic. The poet is clad in the folds of a timeless toga. The bronze statue is 3.35 meters high. Later,

Sabin Bălașa Sabin Bălașa (; June 17, 1932 – April 1, 2008) was a contemporary Romanian painter. His works were described by himself as belonging to cosmic Romanticism. Biography Bălașa was born in Dobriceni, Olt County. After completing his second ...

used the image on a fresco in the university lobby, identifying the poet with the hero of '' Luceafărul''. The pedestal measures 5.20 meters and is made from Vratsa stone. Each side features a human-sized bronze statue depicting ''Philosophy'' and ''Poetry'' in allegory. They sit on chairs, as suggested by committee member

Orest Tafrali Orest is a masculine given name which may refer to: * Orest Banach (born 1948), German-American former soccer goalkeeper * Orest Budyuk (born 1995), Ukrainian footballer * Orest Grechka (born 1975), Ukrainian-American former soccer player * Ore ...

. Reportedly, the sculptor modeled the latter on his wife and not, as presumed, on Eminescu’s lover Veronica Micle. The male figure has been said to depict

Poor Dionis ''Poor Dionis'' or ''Poor Dionysus'' ( ro, Sărmanul Dionis, originally spelled ''Sermanul Dionisie''; Valentin Coșereanu"Jurnalul Junimii" in ''Caiete Critice'', Issue 6/2010, p. 23 also translated as ''Wretched Dionysus'' or ''The Sorrowful Dio ...

, but resembles the sculptor himself. Two bas reliefs are set near the base of the pedestal, depicting scenes from ''Luceafărul'' and '' Doina''. In 1946, soon after the Soviet occupation of Romania, the authorities chiseled out the nationalistic quotation from the latter poem."85 de ani de la dezvelirea statuii lui Mihai Eminescu"
in '' Curierul de Iași'', June 13, 2014 Two surrounding stone benches were added at the behest of Tafrali, inspired by the Paris statue of François Coppée. In 1957, the ensemble was moved to its current site at the foot of

Copou Hill The Copou Park or Copou Gardens is the oldest public park in Iaşi, Romania. Its development started in 1834 under the reign of Mihail Sturdza, making the park one of the first public gardens in Romania and a Iaşi landmark. In its centre lies ...

. Previously, the demolished Union Monument had stood there. Since 2004, the statue has been listed as a historic monument by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs.Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010: Județul Iași

Notes

References

*Sorin Iftimi, “Iașii în bronz și marmură. Memoria statuilor”, in ''Cercetări Istorice'', vol. XXIV-XXVI/2010, pp. 495-543 {{coord, 47.17043, 27.57583, format=dms, type:landmark_region:RO, display=title Historic monuments in Iași County Buildings and structures in Iași Outdoor sculptures in Romania Bronze sculptures in Romania 1929 establishments in Romania 1929 sculptures Mihai Eminescu