The Stefan Nemanja monument reached its maximum height

The Stefan Nemanja monument in Belgrade’s Sava Square, whose renovation is underway, has reached its maximum height.

Stefan Nemanja Monument

Stefan Nemanja Monument

Stefan Nemanja Monument

Stefan Nemanja Monument

“A beautiful view of the monument to Stefan Nemanja, which has reached its maximum height. The work of the Russian sculptor and academic Alexander Rukavishnikov will soon be completely finished. Citizens can already get the impression of how well this monument will fit into the atmosphere of the city. new Sava square. values, this monument has enormous historical and cultural significance for the Serbian people. Stefan Nemanja is the founder of the Serbian state and later of the Serbian Empire, “stated the Deputy Mayor of Belgrade, Goran Vesić, on his page From Facebook.

The 23-meter-high, 68-ton monument to the great prefect shows Stefan Nemanja with a sword in his right hand and the Hilandar Letter in his left hand. Instead of the usual pedestal, Stefan Nemanja stands on a cracked Byzantine helmet that rests on all fours on the ground and from which the ruler’s scepter protrudes. According to the author of the monument, the pedestal shows the continuity of Serbian culture, which was born from Byzantine culture. The interior of the helmet will be accessible to citizens and will show the history of the Nemanjic dynasty.

The idea of ​​the monument, as well as its appearance and price, were the object and object of public criticism.

Thus, several professors from the Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy requested that the Secretariat of Culture of the City of Belgrade, in accordance with the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance, submit data on the costs of making and erecting a monument to Stefan Nemanja.

And the Society of Conservatives of Serbia (DKS) demanded of all competent institutions to resign from the appointment, as they said, a large and aesthetically lost monument to Stefan Nemanja in Sava square.

President of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU) Vladimir Kostić said that there is no doubt that Stefan Nemanja deserves a monument, but …

“Personally, I am not close to the aesthetic line that determines this current monument, the dimensions that lead me to the dilemma of whether it is a real balance of the need to return the great man of our history or of some other, needs that he just needs to illustrate, ”he said. Kostic.