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Nicholas Copernicus Monument

Nicholas Copernicus Monument (1822 / 1945) by Bertel Thorvaldsen in front of the Staszic Palace (1820-1823 / 1946-50) seat of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Nowy Świat Street, Warsaw, Poland

 

Monumento a Nicolò Copernico (1822 / 1945) di Bertel Thorvaldsen di fronte il Palazzo Staszic (1820-1823 / 1946-50) sede dell'Accademia Polacca delle Scienze, Via Nowy Świat, Varsavia, Polonia

 

Pomnik Mikołaja Kopernika, Pałac Staszica, Ulica Nowy Świat, Warszawa, Polska

 

The story: The sculpture was carved by Bertel Thorvaldsen in 1822 and erected in 1833. Was destroyed by the German army in World War II after the Warsaw Uprising, probably melted and turned into tanks. After the war the original form of the sculpture was found in Denmark and the Danish government presented Warsaw with an exact copy of the original monument. It was re-erected on July 22, 1945.

The palace was damaged during the 1939 siege of Warsaw and nearly razed during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. In 1946-50 it was rebuilt in its original neoclassical form.

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Uploaded on April 23, 2009
Taken on December 5, 2008