vittorio emanuele ii square: monuments for roman poet virgil and gandhi
These beautiful monuments can be found on this famous square with palm trees, close to the Brindisi port.
virgil: epic roman poet
The Roman poet Virgil lived in Brindisi and died in 19 B.C. in his Brindisi house, travelling back from Greece. According to the traditions his house, marked by an epigraph, is located next to the Roman columns, facing the sea.
carrara marble statue
Virgil's statue is made from fine white marble from Carrara (Tuscany). It is a very pure and resistant material connecting the artist to the classical sculpture tradition. The epical themes declaimed by the great poet, especially the contrasts between 'war and peace' and 'good and evil' are represented through several symbols.
There's a nike without arms, at the top of the column along which falls a kind of shroud. It is there to remind us how any victory is always accompanied by sorrow, pain, death and mutilation. Around the base of the column there is a helmet, another symbol of war. And a dog, a horse, as symbols of loyalty and security. A sheep and an olive branch, symbols of the hope of humanity that only wants to live in peace.
mahatma gandhi monument in bronze
The bronze bust depicting Mahatma Gandhi was inaugurated in the summer of 2024 in this Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II in Brindisi. The ceremony took place in the presence of Vani Sarraju Rao, the Indian Ambassador to Italy, among others. It is a gift from India to the city of Brindisi and a copy of the statue that India also gave to the city of Hiroshima. Gandhi's historical importance to Brindisi dates back to December 14, 1931, when the Mahatma, after participating in the second conference on the India question in London, decided to change his return route to India by stopping in the port city. His greeting on leaving Brindisi with the white handkerchief remains an image linked to the iconography of the city's contemporary history.
how to get there
These monuments are located on Emanuele II square. It is best accessible on foot during a city walk.