A statue of Mihai Eminescu in

Galați Galați ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names) is the capital city of Galați County in the historical region of Western Moldavia, in eastern Romania. Galați is a port town on the river Danube. and the sixth-larges ...

, Romania, is located in Mihai Eminescu Park on Domnească Street.

Preparations

In March 1909, an organizing committee was set up with the goal of commemorating 20 years since the death of poet

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

. Its members planned to finance a statue from sales of a book dedicated to Eminescu and a medallion, as well as through donations. The committee included

Jean Bart Jean Bart (; ; 21 October 1650 – 27 April 1702) was a Flemish naval commander and privateer. Early life Jean Bart was born in Dunkirk in 1650 to a seafaring family, the son of Jean-Cornil Bart (c. 1619–1668) who has been described various ...

and Henric Sanielevici. Press reports were favorable, except for

Nicolae Iorga Nicolae Iorga (17 January 1871 – 27 November 1940) was a historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, Albanologist, poet and playwright. Co-founder (in 1910) of the Democratic Nationalist Party (PND), he served as a member of Parliament ...

’s ''Neamul românesc'', which commented ironically on Sanielevici.

Ion Scurtu Ion Scurtu (–July 23, 1922) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian literary critic. A native of Brașov, in the Transylvania region, he attended the local Andrei Șaguna National College (Brașov), Romanian high school, wher ...

helped promote the initiative in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

. In June, the

Romanian Writers' Society The Romanian Writers' Society () was a professional association based in Bucharest, Romania, that aided the country's writers and promoted their interests. Founded in 1909, it operated for forty years before the early Communist Romania, communist re ...

organized a fundraising event at the Papadopol Theater in Galați; participants included

Mihail Sadoveanu Mihail Sadoveanu (; occasionally referred to as Mihai Sadoveanu; 5 November 1880 – 19 October 1961) was a Romanian novelist, short story writer, journalist and political figure, who twice served as acting President of Romania, head of st ...

Cincinat Pavelescu Cincinat Pavelescu ( – November 30, 1934) was a Romanian poet and playwright. Born in Bucharest, his parents were the engineer Ion Pavelescu and his wife Paulina (''née'' Bucșan). He attended the Cantemir High School in his native city, foll ...

Ion Minulescu Ion Minulescu (; 6 January 1881 – 11 April 1944) was a Romanian avant-garde poet, novelist, short story writer, journalist, literary critic, and playwright. Often publishing his works under the pseudonyms I. M. Nirvan and Koh-i-Noor (the latte ...

Dimitrie Anghel Dimitrie Anghel (; July 16, 1872 – November 13, 1914) was a Romanian poet. Anghel was of Aromanian descent from his father. His first poem was published in '' Contemporanul'' (1890). His debut editorial ''Traduceri din Paul Verlaine'' was publ ...

and

Eugen Lovinescu Eugen Lovinescu (; 31 October 1881 – 16 July 1943) was a Romanian modernist literary historian, literary critic, academic, and novelist, who in 1919 established the ''Sburătorul'' literary club. He was the father of Monica Lovinescu, and the ...

; attendance was somewhat sparse.Păltăna and Țurlan, p. 249

Description and unveiling

By 1911, sufficient funds for the statue had been gathered. The commission was granted to

Frederic Storck Frederic Storck (19 January 1872, Bucharest – 26 December 1942, Bucharest) was a Romanian sculptor. His father was the sculptor Karl Storck. His brother, Carol Storck, was also a sculptor and his wife, Cecilia Cuțescu-Storck was a painter. ...

. Iorga wrote of the work: “instead of showing a gentleman in a jacket or even a frock”, similar to photographs of the poet, the sculptor “has made to arise from a large block of marble, given meaning by the blows of his hammer, a serene, gentle figure—not dreamy, but the grandly disarming portrait of the poet in the fullness of maturity, in complete control of his genius. An agile woman’s body unfolds from the stone, causing the flame of a torch to flutter—surely the symbol of the lively verses that the poet plucked from the harshness of his surrounding life”. The unveiling, delayed by a cholera epidemic, took place in October 1911. It was widely reported by the local and national press. Two Romanian-language journals from Austria-Hungary, ''Românul'' of Arad and Luceafărul of

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , , Hungarian: ''Nagyszeben'', , Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'' or ''Hermestatt'') is a city in central Romania, situated in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles th ...

, sent delegations.

Duiliu Zamfirescu Duiliu Zamfirescu (; 30 October 1858 – 3 June 1922) was a Romanian novelist, poet, short story writer, lawyer, nationalist politician, journalist, diplomat and memoirist. In 1909, he was elected a member of the Romanian Academy, and, for a whi ...

represented the

Romanian Academy The Romanian Academy ( ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life. According to its bylaws, the academy's ma ...

, Education Minister Constantin C. Arion the government. Iorga, Anghel and Ioan A. Bassarabescu also spoke. Afterwards, a theatrical performance of an

Émile Augier Guillaume Victor Émile Augier (; 17 September 182025 October 1889) was a French dramatist. He was the thirteenth member to occupy seat 1 of the on 31 March 1857. Biography Augier was born at Valence, Drôme, the grandson of Pigault Lebrun, an ...

play, starring

Maria Filotti Maria Filotti (9 October 1883, Batogu, Brăila, Batogu, Brăila County, Romania – 5 November 1956, Bucharest, Romania) was a Romanian actress . She was described as one of the "prestigious actors of the great realistic school" and the "directres ...

, had verses by Eminescu interpolated. Others present that day included Sadoveanu, Minulescu, Bart, Emil Gârleanu, Alexandru Cazaban, Al. T. Stamatiad,

Corneliu Moldovanu Corneliu Moldovanu (pen name of Corneliu Vasiliu; 15 August 1883 – 2 September 1952) was a Romanian poet, prose writer and playwright. Born in Bârlad, his parents were Dumitrache Vasiliu, a merchant, and his wife Ruxandra (''née'' Rășca ...

and Natalia Negru.Păltăna and Țurlan, p. 251

Reaction and legacy

The festivities led to a rise in popularity of the city's Conservative Party, prompting attacks by the local

National Liberal National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal policies and issues with elements of nationalism. Historically, national liberalism has also been used in the same meaning as conservative liberalism (right-liberalism). A serie ...

press. These began with criticism of Arion and the '' Junimist''s in power, continuing with epigrams and poems highlighting the Liberal viewpoint. At last, the opposition announced its intention to create a rival committee. This “non-partisan” body would ensure that the statue be moved “from its prosaic corner in the municipal park, surrounded by cafes, bars and tobacco stores, to the public garden, among the leaves of which the lonely poet sang with such affection”. The proposed finale would be a new, “dignified, purely cultural” inauguration presided by

Alexandru Vlahuță Alexandru Vlahuță (; 5 September 1858 – 19 November 1919) was a Romanian writer. His best known work is '' România pitorească'', an overview of Romania's landscape in the form of a travelogue. He was also the main editor of ''Sămănătoru ...

George Coșbuc George Coșbuc (; 20 September 1866 – 9 May 1918) was a Romanian poet, translator, teacher, and journalist, best remembered for his verses describing, praising and eulogizing rural life, its many travails but also its occasions for joy. In 19 ...

and

Ion Luca Caragiale Ion Luca Caragiale (; According to his birth certificate, published and discussed by Constantin Popescu-Cadem in ''Manuscriptum'', Vol. VIII, Nr. 2, 1977, pp. 179–184 – 9 June 1912), commonly referred to as I. L. Caragiale, was a Romanians, ...

.Păltăna and Țurlan, pp. 251-52 While two earlier busts existed, the Galați monument is the oldest sculpture of Eminescu. Every year, commemorations are held to mark his birth (January 15) and death (June 15).Zanfir Ilie, “Eminescu la Galați - mai bine de un secol de legendă și de iubire”, in ''Biblioteca'', nr. 10/2018 Beginning in 1998, unknown persons have cut off the torch-bearing hand of the female figure, typically in the days before January 15. Despite the installation of security cameras, no one has ever been apprehended. Some 20 times, the hand has had to be replaced with a plaster replica. The statue is listed as a

historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs.Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010: Județul Galați

Notes

References

*Paul Păltăna and Valentin Țurlan, “Noi mărturii privitoare la ridicarea monumentului lui Mihai Eminescu la Galați“, in ''Danubius'', vol. IV/1970, pp. 245–59 {{WikidataCoord, display=inline,title Historic monuments in Galați County Buildings and structures in Galați Outdoor sculptures in Romania Marble sculptures in Romania 1911 establishments in Romania 1911 sculptures Mihai Eminescu