Matoš on the Bench – Strossmayer Promenade

This sculpture, “Matoš on the Bench,” was first placed here in 1978. It was originally made of plaster, but later they cast it in aluminum, which you see today.

This isn’t the only “Matoš on the Bench” you’ll find. Replicas of this very sculpture have popped up in a few other places. You’ll find one in Sisak, along the Kupa river promenade, since 1992. And, there’s one near Paris, in Issy-les-Moulineaux, in the Mille Roses park by the St. Sauveur chapel, near the Corentin Celton hospital. That one was placed there in 2014, marking the 100th anniversary of his death.

Antun Gustav Matoš was born in Tovarnik in 1873. Legend has it, the midwife predicted he’d be a great man, but that he’d suffer a lot too.

He moved to Zagreb with his family when he was just a toddler, and this city really shaped his early life. They lived in Tomićeva Street, and later in Jurjevska Street. He went to classical gymnasium in the Upper Town, sang in the church choir at St. Catherine’s, and even learned to play the cello at the Croatian Institute of Music.

His life took him to Belgrade and Paris, where he wrote some of his most famous works. But he returned to Zagreb, where he passed away in 1914, with a book in his hands. He was trying to write something on the inside cover of the book, but what he wanted to say remains a mystery.

Matoš was a true literary giant – a poet, novelist, essayist, and travel writer. He’s considered one of Croatia’s greatest writers. And this sculpture, it’s a fitting tribute to his legacy.