Unknown Prisoner - Dachau, Germany - Figurative Public Sculpture on Waymarking.com

Long Description:
The German language has several words that refer to memorial sites. Their meanings elucidate the relationship between the site itself and the visitor. For instance, gedachtnis is a root word in the names of many memorials. The Kaiser Wilhelm Gedachtniskirche, a war memorial in Berlin, is a good example. In English, the word gedachtnis simply means "memory." Like the English word "memorial," it encourages the visitor to participate in the memory of an event. The words denkmal and gedenkstatte contain the verb denken, to think. They encourage the visitor to reflect. Finally, the word mahnmal contains in it the root mahnen. This means "to warn," "to admonish," or "to caution." It suggests an imperative to take action and implies negative consequences if this does not occur. For instance, ein mahnbriefis a dunning letter that sets forth the action to be taken by the recipient and the negative consequences if no action is taken. Mahnmal entreats an individual to remember, reflect, and respond to the experience of visiting a memorial. The explicit nature of the memorial at Dachau as a mahnmal appears carved on the base of a statue by the artist Fritz Koelle. Below the statue of a prisoner are carved the words, "Den Toten zur Ehr,, den Lebenden zur Mahnung" [To Honor the Dead, to Warn the Living].

Source: (visit link)

Name: Unknown Prisoner Figure Type: Human Artist Name: Fritz Koelle Location: Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site Date created or placed: Not listed Materials used: Not listed

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Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   7/31/2007 LightninRod visited it

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