Our forlorn Grand Duke spent almost a century in storage and a few decades surrounded by the former “Mercatino Americano”.At last Leopold II is free to stand in the middle of a cleared “Piazza XX Settembre”, just in front of the church of “San Benedetto”.
We don't know yet if this square will become a new “Place d'Italie”, whatever that may mean in the minds of our city planners.
The monument is a work of our fellow citizen, the sculptor Paolo Emilio Demi. It was damaged in the riots of 1849, but now needs only some cleaning from more recent outrages.
The unfinished bas-relief on the basement is the work of another local sculptor, Enrico Mirandoli (1810-1891).See also: Forlorn Grand Duke - Mercatino Americano
San Benedetto - Place d'Italie?
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