THE ICONOGRAPHY OF THE MACEDONIAN STRUGGLE: A Unique Phenomenon of Historical Sculpture in Greece

Abstract

The Macedonian Struggle (1904-1908) was one of the most important national efforts of the 20th century and the one that prepared the ground for the liberation of Macedonia during the Balkan Wars (1912-13). It was trench warfare conducted by the Greeks both against the Ottoman Turks and the Bulgarian comitadjis who were plotting its lands. The Greekness of Macedonia was the dominant issue and many people from all over Greece gave their lives, including Pavlos Melas, whose premature and unjust sacrifice was a point of reference for all fighters. Thus, a new generation of heroes was “born”, and their descendants tried tenaciously to keep their memory alive. In order to honor and acknowledge the sacrifice of the Macedonian fighters, they created monuments in Macedonian cities, towns and villages that immortalized the protagonists and chronicled the events of the period. On the other hand, these works are not only historical monuments but also art monuments that enrich with their new elements the sculpture of historical subjects of Modern Greek art. In fact, their number is impressive and far exceeds works of this type that refer to other national moments of the Greek history.