Monument to the Unknown Soldier on the Avala
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier ( Serbian Споменик Незнаном јунаку Spomenik Neznanom junaku ) is a black Jablanica - granite -built monument on the top of Avala in the southeast of Belgrade . It was built by the Croatian sculptor and student Auguste Rodins Ivan Meštrović between 1934 and 1938.
Building history
The erection of the tomb goes back to the initiative of the Yugoslav monarch Alexander I to commemorate the fallen of the Balkan Wars and the First World War . Mount Avala, dominated by the medieval castle Žrnov , was chosen as the site. The once strategically important and historically significant medieval castle was completely demolished. Between 1934 and 1938, Ivan Mestrovic's monumental building was built in its place.
architecture
The architecture of the monument is based on the tomb of Cyrus II in Pasargadae and is characterized by a rectangular building to which a steep staircase leads. The sloping roof is carried by eight female caryatids in traditional costume, representing the individual Yugoslav peoples : These figures represent Serbian women from Slavonia and Vojvodina , one woman each from Montenegro and Kosovo , one woman each from Dalmatia and Zagorje, and one Macedonian and a Slovenian woman. The tomb itself stands on five rectangular granite slabs that taper towards the top.
A monumental staircase leads from the base of the mountain to the tomb, on which the President of Serbia (formerly the President of Yugoslavia) commemorates the dead of the world wars every year on the national holiday (today February 15, during the SFRY on November 29).
Building material
The most important masonry stone in the former Yugoslavia, the famous black Jablanica granite from Herzegovina, was chosen as the building material. A total of 8000 m³ of granite from Jablanica was procured for the construction . The monumental figures of the eight caryatids were made from blocks of up to 15 tons in weight.
Web links
- Reference of the Granit Jablanica company on the structure of the tomb and its execution
- Spomenik neznanom junaku na Avali . Website for the monument.
Coordinates: 44 ° 41 ′ 27 ″ N , 20 ° 30 ′ 48 ″ E