Garibaldi Monument in Taganrog
The Garibaldi Monument in Taganrog is a memorial to Giuseppe Garibaldi, the Italian national hero and leader of the Risorgimento. It was installed near the yacht club on 2 June 1961 by decision of the World Peace Council, marking the centenary of Italy’s liberation. The monument was created by Taganrog artist Yu. S. Yakovenko and architect M. V. Baranov. Its stele is 5.15 meters high. The monument is the only one honoring Giuseppe Garibaldi in the former Soviet Union. Its appearance changed several times: because the original material was short-lived plastered brick, a bronze relief of Garibaldi was cast in summer 1990 to replace it, based on a work by Moscow sculptor Lev Matyushin.
September 2007 © ISasha · Public domain
September 2015 © Бобровская Ольга · CC BY-SA 4.0
July 2006 © Alexander Mirgorodskiy · Attribution
© ISasha · Public domain
© ISasha · Public domain
Identification | |
| Title | Garibaldi Monument in Taganrog |
| Subject | Giuseppe Garibaldi |
| Original name | Monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi |
| Type | Monument; obelisk/stele with bas-relief |
Historical context | |
| Purpose | To celebrate the friendship between Italy and Russia and the centenary of Italian unification |
| Related movement | Italian Risorgimento |
| Commemorated event | Garibaldi's visit to Taganrog in April 1833 |
Creator | |
| Bas-relief artist | Nikolai Baranov |
| Replacement bronze sculptor | Lev Matyushin |
| Architect | M. V. Baranov |
| Designer | Local artist Yu. S. Yakovenko |
| Replacement bas-relief artist | David Begalov |
Discovery and provenance | |
| Commissioned by | The city Soviet of Taganrog |
| Decision to erect | The World Peace Council |
| Installation date | 2 June 1961 |
| Unveiling occasion | Centenary of the unification/liberation of Italy |
| Location | Port area of Taganrog, Russia, near the seaport where Garibaldi's schooner Clorinda once stood |
| Associated street name | Ulitsa Garibaldi |
Physical characteristics | |
| Original relief | Bronze bas-relief of Garibaldi's profile with a palm branch |
| Later relief | Bronze bas-relief of Garibaldi |
| Height | 5 meters |
| Original material | Perishable plastered brick |
| Form | Banner-shaped stele |
Appearance | |
| Depiction | A fluttering flag/banner |
| Inscription placement | Inscription on the reverse side of the bust/relief |
| Front inscription | A quotation from Friedrich Engels: "In Garibaldi's person Italy had a hero of the ancient type, capable of working miracles and who worked miracles." |
| Back inscription | "In 1833, Giuseppe Garibaldi took an oath of dedicating his life to liberation and unification of his homeland – Italy. Under the leadership of the national hero Giuseppe Garibaldi, the country was liberated and unified." |
Iconography and meaning | |
| Historical reference | Garibaldi's oath in 1833 |
| Interpretation | The monument presents Garibaldi as a heroic, almost classical figure and cites Friedrich Engels |
Location and ownership | |
| Country | Russia |
History and restoration | |
| Participants in restoration unveiling | Annita Garibaldi-Jallet and representatives of the Italian Embassy in Moscow |
| Protection status | Placed under protection by Rostov Oblast in 1992 |
| Post-restoration change | The Friedrich Engels quotation was removed from the front side; the reverse inscription remained unchanged |
| Replacement of bas-relief | 1986, for technical reasons |
| Restoration occasion | City Day celebrations and events dedicated to Garibaldi's bicentenary |
| Restoration date | 12 September 2007 |
| Restoration | The monument was renovated in 2007 |
Significance | |
| Uniqueness | The only monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi in Russia and the former Soviet Union |
| Exhibition display | A photograph of the monument was shown at the "A Hero of Two Worlds: Garibaldi Monuments Around the World" exhibition at the Garibaldi-Meucci Museum in New York on 21 July 2007 |