Statue of Giordano Bruno

Giovanni Bovio (1837–1903).

The Statue of Giordano Bruno, created by Ettore Ferrari, was erected at Campo de' Fiori in Rome, Italy, in 1889.

The inscription on the basement recites:

A BRUNO - IL SECOLO DA LUI DIVINATO - QUI DOVE IL ROGO ARSE

(English: To Bruno - the century predicted by him - here where the fire burned)

History

Close-up of the statue.

The sculptor, Ettore Ferrari, was the Grand master of the Grande Oriente d'Italia, the Masonic jurisdiction of Italy, who were strong supporters of the unification of Italy over the previous Papal rule of Rome.

On April 20, 1884, Pope Leo XIII published the encyclical Humanum genus. As a response, the Freemasons decided to create a statue of the pantheist Giordano Bruno. The statue was unveiled on June 9, 1889, at the site where Bruno was burnt at the stake for heresy on February 17, 1600, and the radical politician Giovanni Bovio gave a speech surrounded by about 100 Masonic flags. In October 1890, Pope Leo XIII warned Italy in his encyclical Ab Apostolici about Freemasonry and called for its dissolution, whose members he called anti-Christian and enemies.[1]

Present day

The monument to Bruno in the place he was executed, Campo de' Fiori in Rome.

Today, the square is the center of an annual commemoration by atheists and freethinkers.[2]

A statue of a stretched human figure standing on its head designed by Alexander Polzin depicting Bruno's death at the stake was placed in Potsdamer Platz station in Berlin, Germany on March 2, 2008. [3]

References

  1. ↑ Eugen Lennhoff, Oskar Posner, Dieter A. Binder: Internationales Freimaurer-Lexikon. 5. überarbeitete Auflage. Herbig Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7766-2478-6
  2. ↑ Paula Findlen, "A Hungry Mind: Giordano Bruno, Philosopher and Heretic", The Nation, September 10, 2008. "Campo de' Fiori was festooned with flags bearing Masonic symbols. Fiery speeches were made by politicians, scholars and atheists about the importance of commemorating Bruno as one of the most original and oppressed freethinkers of his age." Accessed on 19 September 2008
  3. ↑ http://bruno-denkmal.de/index.html Bruno-Denkmal website in German

External links

Coordinates: 41°53′44″N 12°28′20″E / 41.89556°N 12.47222°E