Teodor Rygier
Encyclopedia
Teodor Rygier was a Polish
sculptor known for his Adam Mickiewicz Monument
in Kraków
, Poland
. Rygier studied in Warsaw
, Dresden
, Munich
and in Vienna
. In the years 1865-1866 he studied sculpture in Berlin
and in Paris
. Subsequently, Rygier lived and worked in Florence
between 1873-1886, and from 1886 in Rome.
Teodor Rygier was the author of various monuments, portraits, allegories and medallions. Aside from his statue of Adam Mickiewicz at the Main Market Square
in Kraków, there is also one in the Old Town district, namely the bust of painter Juliusz Kossak
featured in front of the Palace of Art at Planty Park
.
The idea for a monument to a Polish national bard Adam Mickiewicz
was put forward by university youth on the account of the return of his remains from Paris. In the years 1882-1888, a committee was set up to conduct a public competition for its design. Teodor Rygier, who took part in all three stages of the contest, was awarded the rights for its production by popular demand, ahead of over 60 artists including the renowned Cyprian Godebski
, professor at the Imperial Academy of Arts
in St. Petersburg from Paris
, who won the first prize. The unveiling of the statue took exceptionally long time due to endless requests for revisions coming from the artistic committee. The monument was finally unveiled on 16 June 1898 for the 100th anniversary of Mickiewicz's birth.
The design of the monument
is based on respected international cannons of the time. Depicted poet, raised on the pedestal, is surrounded by four lower groups which symbolize: Motherland i.e. Poland (from the face of the monument), Science and learning – an old man with a boy (from the side of Florianska Street), Poetry (from the side of the Church of St. Wojciech
), and Patriotic love or Valour (facing Sukiennice
Hall). All bronze figures were cast in the Nellich foundry in Rome.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
sculptor known for his Adam Mickiewicz Monument
Adam Mickiewicz Monument, Kraków
Adam Mickiewicz Monument in Kraków, , is one of the best known bronze monuments in Poland, and a favourite meeting place at the Main Market Square in the Old Town district of Kraków....
in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Rygier studied in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
and in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. In the years 1865-1866 he studied sculpture in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Subsequently, Rygier lived and worked in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
between 1873-1886, and from 1886 in Rome.
Teodor Rygier was the author of various monuments, portraits, allegories and medallions. Aside from his statue of Adam Mickiewicz at the Main Market Square
Main Market Square, Kraków
The Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
in Kraków, there is also one in the Old Town district, namely the bust of painter Juliusz Kossak
Juliusz Kossak
Juliusz Fortunat Kossak was a Polish historical painter and master illustrator who specialized in battle scenes, military portraits and horses...
featured in front of the Palace of Art at Planty Park
Planty Park
Planty is one of the largest city parks in Kraków, Poland. It encircles the Stare Miasto , where the Medieval city walls used to stand until the early 19th century. The historic Old Town is not to be confused with the Administrative District No. 1 Stare Miasto extending further east.The park has an...
.
The competition for Adam Mickiewicz Monument
Adam Mickiewicz
Adam Bernard Mickiewicz ) was a Polish poet, publisher and political writer of the Romantic period. One of the primary representatives of the Polish Romanticism era, a national poet of Poland, he is seen as one of Poland's Three Bards and the greatest poet in all of Polish literature...
was put forward by university youth on the account of the return of his remains from Paris. In the years 1882-1888, a committee was set up to conduct a public competition for its design. Teodor Rygier, who took part in all three stages of the contest, was awarded the rights for its production by popular demand, ahead of over 60 artists including the renowned Cyprian Godebski
Cyprian Godebski (sculptor)
Cyprian Godebski was a Polish sculptor and from 1870 a professor at the Imperial Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg...
, professor at the Imperial Academy of Arts
Imperial Academy of Arts
The Russian Academy of Arts, informally known as the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, was founded in 1757 by Ivan Shuvalov under the name Academy of the Three Noblest Arts. Catherine the Great renamed it the Imperial Academy of Arts and commissioned a new building, completed 25 years later in 1789...
in St. Petersburg from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, who won the first prize. The unveiling of the statue took exceptionally long time due to endless requests for revisions coming from the artistic committee. The monument was finally unveiled on 16 June 1898 for the 100th anniversary of Mickiewicz's birth.
The design of the monument
Statue
A statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
is based on respected international cannons of the time. Depicted poet, raised on the pedestal, is surrounded by four lower groups which symbolize: Motherland i.e. Poland (from the face of the monument), Science and learning – an old man with a boy (from the side of Florianska Street), Poetry (from the side of the Church of St. Wojciech
Church of St. Wojciech
The Church of St. Adalbert or Church of St. Wojciech , located to the side of the Main Market Square in Old Town, Kraków, is one of the oldest stone churches in Poland...
), and Patriotic love or Valour (facing Sukiennice
Sukiennice
The Renaissance Sukiennice in Kraków, Poland, is one of the city's most recognizable icons. It is the central feature of the Main Market Square in the Kraków Old Town . It was once a major centre of international trade. Traveling merchants met there to discuss business and to barter...
Hall). All bronze figures were cast in the Nellich foundry in Rome.