Monument Totally Explained

Everything about Monuments totally explained

A monument is a statue, building, or other edifice created to commemorate a person or important event. They are frequently used to improve the appearance of a city or location. Cities that are planned such as Washington D.C., New Delhi and Brasília are often built around monuments. The Washington Monument's location (and vertical geometry, though not physical detail) was conceived to help organize public space in the city before it was ever connected with George Washington. Older cities have monuments placed at locations that are already important or are sometimes redesigned to focus on one. As Shelley suggested in his famous poem "Ozymandias" ("Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"), the purpose of monuments is very often to impress or awe. In English the word "monumental" is often used in reference to something of extraordinary size and power. The word comes from the Latin "monere," which means 'to remind' or 'to warn.'
   Functional structures made notable by their age, size or historic significance can also be regarded as monuments. This can happen because of great age and size, as in the case of the Great Wall of China, or because an event of great import occurred there such as the village of Oradour-sur-Glane in France. Monuments are also often designed to convey historical or political information. They can be used to reinforce the primacy of contemporary political power, such as the column of Trajan or the numerous statues of Lenin in the Soviet Union. They can be used to educate the populace about important events or figures from the past, such as in the renaming of the old General Post Office Building in New York City to the James A. Farley Building (James Farley Post Office), after former Postmaster General James Farley.
   Monuments have been created for thousands of years, and they're often the most durable and famous symbols of ancient civilizations. The Egyptian Pyramids, the Greek Parthenon, and the Moai of Easter Island have become symbols of their civilizations. In more recent times, monumental structures such as the Statue of Liberty and Eiffel Tower have become iconic emblems of modern nation-states. The term monumentality relates to the symbolic status and physical presence of a monument.
   Until recently, it was customary for archaeologists to study large monuments and pay less attention to the everyday lives of the societies that created them. New ideas about what constitutes the archaeological record have revealed that certain legislative and theoretical approaches to the subject are too focused on earlier definitions of monuments. An example has been the United Kingdom's Scheduled Ancient Monument laws.

Famous Monuments

Argentina

Brazil

Cantareira Station, Niterói

Carioca Aqueduct, Rio de Janeiro

Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer), Rio de Janeiro

MAC (Museu de Arte Contemporânea), Niterói

National Congress of Brazil, Brasília

Quinta da Boa Vista, Rio de Janeiro

Chile

Monumento a Hernando de Magallanes, Punta Arenas

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (newest & largest marine protected area in the world)

International

Seven Wonders of the World

Types of monuments

Buildings designed as iconic landmarks

Church monuments to commemorate the dead, above or near their grave, often featuring an effigy

Cenotaphs and memorials to commemorate the dead, usually war casualties - for example Vimy Ridge Memorial and India Gate

Columns, often topped with a statue - for example Nelson's Column in London

Grave stones constitute small monuments to a dead person

Mausoleums and tombs to inter the dead - for example the Great Pyramid and Taj Mahal

Monoliths erected for religious or commemorative purposes - for example Stonehenge

Obelisks usually erected to commemorate great leaders - for example the Washington Monument

Statues of famous individuals or symbols - for example Statue of Liberty

Terminating vista, layout design for urban monuments

Triumphal arches, almost always to commemorate military successes - for example the Arc de Triomphe

Entire areas established as memorials to commemorate wartime atrocities or notably bloody battles - for example Oradour-sur-Glane or the battlefields at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and Borodino

On occasion, monuments also refer to areas of special natural beautyFurther Information

Get more info on 'Monuments'.

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