Name of Monument:Holy Trinity Monument Also known as:Plague Pillar (Column) Location:Osijek, Slavonia, Croatia Date:1729–1730; 1784 Artists:Unknown Denomination / Type of monument:Votive monument to the plague Patron(s):Marija Ana Petraš History:Marija Ana Petraš, widow of the commander of the fort in Osijek general and vice-marshal Maksimilijan Petraš, initiated the erection of the monument and financed it as was recorded on the occasion by “Pestis Syrmiensis”. In 1784, four statues were taken from Osijek's two city gates to furnish the outer perimeter of the monument. Description:Votive pillars are a town planning-cum-sculptural brief that is typical of Central Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. They relate broadly speaking to two major historical events of the time: the Turkish threat; defeat and withdrawal, and the plague. The Turkish preoccupation, i.e. victory over the Turks, is symbolised by a depiction of the Immaculate Virgin at the top of a central pillar. Monuments erected to protect from or commemorate the plague depict the Holy Trinity at the centre of the composition and the patron saints of the plague at the base. One of the best-known and most influential examples of the latter is the monument to the Holy Trinity in Graben, Vienna, the planning and construction for which some of Vienna's most prominent sculptors took part. Placed at the centre of the main square of the Baroque fortress in Osijek, the Plague Column is Croatia's best-preserved example of a monument designed to ward off or commemorate the end of the plague. Such monuments were a characteristic feature of Central European towns in the 17th and 18th centuries. Special featuresSt. Charles Borromeo (detail)Upper inner rim of the monument 1729/30 Unknown architect St. Roch (detail)Upper inner rim of the monument 1729/30 Unknown architect St. Francis Xavier (detail)Upper inner rim of the monument 1729/30 Unknown architect St. Charles Borromeo, St. Roch, St Francis Xavier and St. John Nepomuk (detail)Inner rim of the monument 1729/30 Unknown architect Selected bibliography:Horvat, A., (ed) “Barok u kontinentalnoj Hrvatskoj” in Barok u Hrvatskoj, Zagreb, 1982. Citation of this web page:Vlasta Zajec "Holy Trinity Monument" in "Discover Baroque Art", Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://baroqueart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;BAR;hr;Mon11;15;en Prepared by: Vlasta Zajec
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