Ossip Zadkine The destroyed city (1953)

This image is one of the most famous international war monuments. The destroyed city has become the epitome of bombed-out Rotterdam. Sculptor Ossip Zadkine made this war memorial in 1947 as a 70 cm high terracotta statue. In 1949, the then director of the Bijenkorf, Mr. Van der Wal, was so impressed by the design that he bought a large bronze version and donated it to the municipality of Rotterdam. The hole in the body of this stricken figure symbolizes how Rotterdam was struck in its heart by the German bombardment on 14 May 1940. Only a few thought the devastation of the image was too demonic to determine the street scene permanently. The vast majority of Rotterdammers thought that the sculpture very well represents the desperation and the desire to rise up in an immediately intelligible way. May 15, 1953 The destroyed city unveiled by Mrs JM van Walsum-Quispel, the wife of mayor Van Walsum. The sculpture was placed at the head of the Leuvehaven, a location that was chosen by Zadkine himself from a few options. The statue was surrounded by the battered city with a view of the damage of the bombardment. Zadkine also chose this location because of the view of the Leuvehaven behind it: it connects the port and city, and has a view of sky and water. Due to the construction of the metro and the construction of the Maritime Museum, the statue had to be moved twice. In 2006 it became The destroyed city placed in its final place on Plein 1940. Also in Zadkine's oeuvre The destroyed city in a special place. It is not only his greatest sculpture, but also one of the most convincing expressions of what occupied him as an artist. For more information: Sculpture International Rotterdam