ABOUT THE STATUE:
The life-size bronze statue of Bjarnason rest atop a cone-shaped, dark gray plinth that appears to be made of cement. Bjarnason is wearing a long dress with an unbuttoned, knee-length coat over it. Her right hand is lightly resting on a dais and her left hand is hanging down by her left side. The statue was created by Ragnhild Stefánsdóttir.
The following text (in Icelandic) is etched onto the plinth:
Ingibjörg H. Bjarnason
14 Des. 1867 - 30 Okt. 1941
Fyrst Kvenna Kjörin til Setu á Alþingi
Alþingismaður 1922 - 1930
Gjöf til Alþingis á 100 Ára Afmæli
Kosningaréttar Kvenna 2015
[English Translation:]
Ingibjörg H. Bjarnason
14 December 1867-30 October 1941
The first woman elected to the Parliament
Member of Parliament 1922 - 1930
Gift of the Parliament on the 100th anniversary of
Women's right to vote in 2015
ABOUT THE WOMAN:
"Ingibjörg H. Bjarnason (14 December 1867 – 30 October 1941) was an Icelandic politician, suffragist, schoolteacher and gymnast. She was the first woman to become a member of the Althing, the parliament of Iceland.
Political career
She first became involved in the women's suffrage movement in Iceland in 1894. In 1915, when Icelandic women won the right to vote, Ingibjörg was chosen by a women's organisation to address parliament and present a celebratory speech, and was elected the head of a committee which raised funds to build a hospital, Landspítali (the National University Hospital) to commemorate the suffragists' win. She led the Women's Slate, a precursor to the feminist Women's List political party, and in 1922 was elected to the Althing. She thereby became the first woman to sit in the Icelandic parliament. She initially ran as an independent member, but in 1924 she joined the Conservative Party and stayed in office as a Conservative member until 1927. In her political career, she promoted women's and children's rights, although she never married or had children."
--Wikipedia (
visit link)