26 art historians expressed support for the restoration of the Marian column

Prague - Against the placement of a replica of the Marian Column in the Old Town Square in Prague, 26 Czech art historians have expressed their opposition in a letter to the Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) and the city council. The Baroque monument, demolished in 1918, was according to the authors of the letter a symbol of Habsburg counter-reformational propaganda, and therefore cannot contribute to reconciliation between the churches. Additionally, there is not enough documentation for the restoration of the historical form of the column, the signatories claim. The letter was published today on the website of the Institute of Art History of the Czech Academy of Sciences. Prague city councilors have already rejected the restoration of the column twice.

The column from the 17th century was toppled by a crowd in 1918, as it was seen as a symbol of the Habsburg monarchy. Its return has been discussed since the 1990s.

The Habsburgs wanted to declare their own ruling claims and their re-Catholicization program through the construction of the column, believe the authors of the letter. "The Marian Column represented, at the moment of its inception, a triumphant expression of Habsburg monarchist ideology based on a program of militant Catholic counter-reformation," states the memorandum. Its authors add that in this context, the monument cannot function in any way as a declaration of ecumenical reconciliation between the churches.

According to the memorandum, the insufficient pictorial documentation of the original work also opposes the restoration of the Marian Column. "The depictions in graphic sheets are very inaccurate and the photographs taken before the destruction of the column are only distant views that do not allow for the reconstruction of details," warn the authors of the letter. Therefore, the replica of the column would be a new entry into the historical environment of the city and should be assessed as such. "If installed, it would become just a completely implausible, trivial attraction," argue the signatories of the memorandum.

Among the signatories of the letter are, among others, the director of the Institute of Art History at Charles University Richard Biegel, the head of the Department of Theory and History of Art at the Prague College of Art and Design Milena Bartlová, and the former director of the National Gallery in Prague Jiří Fajt.

The restoration of the Marian Column is primarily championed by sculptor Petr Váňa, who placed part of the rail of the column and a petition stand in the square in mid-June. He stated that they plan to stay at the site until the column is erected, which he believes he has the right to do, as he has a building permit. However, according to city representatives, the column cannot be built without land appropriation and permission from the owner. Prague rejected the permission for the replica in the square already in 2017, and the current representatives confirmed the opinion of their predecessors.