Nicolaus Copernicus - Chicago, IL
Posted by: 
adgorn
N 41° 51.982 W 087° 36.463
16T E 449565 N 4635117
Copernicus is depicted in a moment of reflection, dressed in 16th century Polish robes, his eyes turned toward the stars. In his hands he holds the instruments that identify him as an astronomer,...
Waymark Code: WMKCYG
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 03/22/2014
Views: 5
More from the Smithsonian website:
...an open compass and resting on his knee, an armillary sphere, or model of the solar system.
Dimensions: Sculpture: approx. 8 1/2 ft. x 4 ft.; Base: approx. 15 ft. x 4 ft x 8 ft.
Inscription: (On front of base:) Nicholas/Copernicus/MIKOLAI KOPERNIK/1473-1543/By reforming astronomy/he initiated modern science. (Rear of base:) MIKOLAI KOPERNIK/Nicolas Copernicus/Polish Astronomer/1473-1543/Erected in 1973 by the Copernicus/Foundation and the Polish American/Congress to Commemorate the/500th Anniversary of his birth.
Original sculpture was based on a contemporary engraving of Copernicus and was executed in Rome by Thorvaldsen in 1823. Original was designed for the Staszic Palace in Warsaw, seat of the Polish Academy of Science, but was destroyed in 1944. The Burnham Park sculpture was commissioned by the Copernicus Foundation and the Polish American Congress in 1973 and was cast in Warsaw from Thorvaldsen's working model under the supervision of Polish sculptor Bronislaw Koniuszy. At the dedication, a copper box containing soil from six sites connected with the life of Copernicus was sealed within the granite base. Copernicus was born in Poland where he was educated as both a priest and a physician. He was the first person to declare that the earth and its planets revolve around the sun, but it was not until sixty years later that Galileo proved his theory with the aid of a telescope.
From the Chicago Park District website pdf: (
visit link)
"ORIGINAL SCULPTURE:1830. INSTALLATION OF REPLICA: 1973. SCULPTOR:Bertel Thorvaldsen. SCULPTOR OF REPLICA:Bronislaw Koniuszy. Dedicated in 1973, the Adler Planetarium erected this monument to mark the 500th anniversary of the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 –1543), the father of modern astronomy. Born in Poland, Copernicus (whose given name was Mikolaj Kopernik), studied mathematics, astronomy, theology, and medicine at the University of Krakow. He challenged age-old beliefs by developing the pioneering theory that the earth revolves around the sun. Copernicus published his seminal work, On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres, Six Books, in 1542, the year before his death.The Copernicus Foundation of Chicago raised $150,000 to produce this replica of an original Nicolaus Copernicus Monument located in Warsaw, Poland at the Palace Staszic, home of the Polish Academy of Science. Sculpted by famed Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1786 –1844), the historic Polish monument was damaged in the destruction of Warsaw during World War II.Sculptor Bronislaw Koniuszy (b. 1917) made the recasting of original monument for Chicago. Koniuszy served as a member of the Polish Underground Army before graduating in 1953 from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. The original sculpture had been seriously damaged by the Nazis but fully conserved and repaired by 1949. After making the new casting, the artist shipped his 100,000 pound bronze statue on the Zawiercie—the first ship to travel regularly between Chicago and the Polish port Gdynia.Chicago’s Nicolaus Copernicus Monument not only honors an important scientific innovator, but also serves as a symbol of pride for the city’s large and active Polish community. At the dedication ceremony on October 14, 1973, Mayor Richard J. Daley credited the monument with symbolically linking Chicago and Poland. He pronounced October 14th as Nicolas Copernicus Day."
Fittingly, this sculpture is located in front Chicago's Adler Planetarium.