Prince Mihailo Monument
He ruled for eight years as the absolutists, making progress in Serbia, harmonized agreements with neighboring countries, for common action in the Balkans.
During the second reign of Prince Mihailo, Turkish authorities handed over the remaining cities of Belgrade, Šabac, Smederevo, Soko, Užice and Kladovo back to Serbia.
During the second half of the 19th century in Belgrade, an increasing number of monuments, representing numerous prominent personalities from the cultural and political life of Serbia, were erected.
After meeting with the Emperor Alexander II in Saint Petersburg, the delegates visited the All-Russian Ethnology Exhibition in Moscow.
They noticed the watercolor painting Liberation of Serbia, actually a design for the monumental project by the sculptor Mikhail Mikeshin.
After arriving in Belgrade in October 1868, and inspecting the city, in cooperation with the government and the Board, he proposed two designs for the monument to the prince, which was to be erected at the Great Market, or the modern Studentski Trg.
Pazzi had become famous for his work on a monument of the Italian writer Dante; it was erected in 1865 in front of the Florentine church of Santa Croce.
[7] Revealing of Monuments was a great spectacle, On the occasion of its unveiling, stage backdrops decorated with flowers, greenery, heraldic shields with a white double-headed eagles and flags, were set.
On this occasion, Enrico Pazzi, as author of one of the most important Serbian monuments of the 19th century, received the Order of the Knight of Takovo, second degree.
Dignitaries included the prime minister Milan Piroćanac and ministers; National assembly's deputies; Dimitrije Nešić, rector of the Great School with its professors; president and members of the Serbian Learned Society; mayor of Belgrade Mihailo Karabiberović and city council members and delegates from throughout Serbia.
Occasionally, architects were suggesting that a protective, decorative fence should be placed around the monument, as the citizens usually sit on the pedestal, which is constantly covered in graffiti.
[11] In the folded parts of the monument (where hands hold the reins and where the arms, flintlock and sword, are attached), the restorers discovered animal bones - pigs, cows and pigeons.
The monument was in good, sturdy shape, is nicely connected to the stone pedestal, with weight perfectly distributed without any visible changes or tilting.
Mihić, who is also a sculptor, opted for the removal of unstable, weak patina, while he wanted to keep the dark, stable one, claiming it is preserving the monument itself.
As the ruler and winner on a horse, the prince is represented in Greek style, but the postures of his head, arms and leg, frozen in moment, are typically Roman.
[1] It was erected in honor of the Prince's most important political achievement - a complete expulsion of the Turks from Serbia in 1867 and liberation of the remaining seven Ottoman-held cities within Serbian territory.
The names of the cities are carved on plates on the statue's octagonal granite pedestal, and with the Prince's hand pointing to Old Serbia, the remaining non-liberated territory.
The bronze figure represents the prince on the horse, the Serbian liberator from the Turks, whose outstretched arm points to yet oppressed areas.
The raised arm, with outstretched index finger comes from militaristic corporeal rhetoric dating back to Roman tradition; in particular used later from French neoclassical art.
The representations on the front and rear frieze are taken from the circle of dynastic mythology that celebrates antiquity and heroism of the Serbian people and their renewal under the Obrenović dynasty.
[19] The scene of the "Serbian Gusle Player" is on the back north side, surrounded by people dressed in different costumes, which points to different ethnic boundaries of the nation, far beyond the political borders that existed in the period of the Principality of that time.
The entire pedestal with reliefs was set on a high rectangular plinth, so that the monument's location and appearance would dominate the space; in the assessment, an important visual and symbolic role is made in the elevation of the royal personage.
Three large bronze garlands are on the lateral sides, on which were inscribed in gilt letters the names of cities liberated in 1867: Belgrade, Kladovo, Soko, Smederevo, Šabac and Užice.
Prince Mihailo is presented without any kind of hat on his head, which was highly unorthodox for any dignitary, let alone a ruler at the time.
He lived in Belgrade for several years and, upon leaving, wrote an open letter to "chivalric kingdom" of Serbia, stating: "I'm Italian in my soul and emotions, but in my heart and rejoice I'm Serbian".
[3][5] Though always highly regarded as a ruler, the role and honor of prince somewhat fell into the oblivion when it comes to his monument, and the statue became simply known as kod konja (Serbian for "at the horse").
