Home | Poniatowski, Josef August
- CountryPoland
- Town:Warsaw
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Year of creation:1826
- Rider(s):Poniatowski, Josef August, Prince
(1763-1813) chose in his strive for the independence of Poland, the side of Napoleon. He was badly wounded in the Battle of Leipzig in 1813. He preferred the death by drowning rather than to be captured
- Sculptor(s):Thorvaldsen, Bertel
(1770 –1844) was a Danish sculptor of international fame, who spent most of his life in Italy.
In his time, he was seen as the successor of Antonio Canova. His strict adherence to classical norms has tended to estrange modern audiences. Among his more famous works are the statues of Nicolaus Copernicus and Jozef Poniatowski in Warsaw; the statue of Maximilian I in Munich; and the tomb monument of Pope Pius VII, the only work by a non-Italian in St. Peter’s Basilica.
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In front of the presidential palace in Warsaw stands a very classical equestrian statue of Poniatowski. The Germans also destroyed this in World War II. Making use of the plaster model in the Thorvaldsen Museum in Copenhagen, a new statue was cast in 1951.
