Sarayburnu Ataturk Monument, Istanbul

LOCATION: Istanbul, Sarayburnu Park

DATE: October 3, 1926 (Anonymous 1926 g:1)

ARTIST: Heinrich KRIPPEL

BY: Municipality (Aslanapa 1993:45; Elibal 1973a:195)

PROJECT FORM: Order (Gezer 1984:87)

ELECTIVE COMMITTEE: Mayor. A commission chaired by Emin Bey (Aslanapa 1993:45; Gezer 1984:87)

COST: 15,000 TL. (Anonymous 1962:201)

PLACE OF MADE: Austria/Vienna, Vereinigte Metallwerk (Elibal 1973 a:194)

MONUMENT

Material: Sculpture bronze, pedestal marble.

Dimensions: Sculpture approx. 3 m., pedestal 3 m.

Inscriptions: History of the statue 1926 10

REGISTRATION NUMBER:-

HISTORY: The monument is in Sarayburnu Park. The idea of ​​erecting an Atatürk statue here belonged to the Mayor of the time, Emin Bey. A commission was established for the implementation of this proposal, which was also approved by the Municipal Assembly (Gezer 1984:86). According to Gezer (1984:86), the construction of the statue was given to H.Krippel.

On August 25, 1925, the foundation of the monument was laid with a ceremony. It was completed in more than a year and the opening ceremony was held on October 3, 1926. Şehremini Muhittin Bey made a speech at the ceremony (Anonymous 1926g).

DEFINITION: It consists of two parts, a pedestal and a statue. The pedestal is located on a two-tiered rectangular platform. Inscriptions in the form of bronze medallions are mounted on the three sides of the pedestal. Only one of these existed in 1994. Today, none exist. The perimeter of the pedestal is 70 cm. surrounded by a high wall. On the rectangular pedestal, there is the figure of Atatürk in civilian clothes. Atatürk is seen as a statesman in a suit. Sarayburnu, Atatürk Monument, is one of the few examples where Atatürk was described as a statesman in the period under consideration. However, it is the first monumental statue of the Republic of Turkey. His right hand is on his waist, his left hand is clenched into a fist, his head is up, his eyebrows are slightly frowning, his eyes are slightly squinted. Your body is stretched like a spring, with its dynamic stance and these mimics, it carries an expression of determination. In front of the pedestal of the statue, "Historical Revolution 1336" is written with the inscription of Calligrapher Kamil Akdik, the date of erection of the statue in 1926, and the declaration of the Republic on the side. The fact that a monument depicting Atatürk as a bureaucrat was erected in Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, suggests that this monument symbolizes the Republic and modernity, in other words, the new political regime and lifestyle.

The monument was on the cover of the French L'Illustration on October 16, 1926.

A postcard of the monument

Source: A A M Cumhuriyet Dönemi Anıt Heykelleri, Yrd. Doç. Dr. Kıvanç Osma, Ankara 2003. ISBN: 975-16-1678-6. Sayfa:32-33