The old square of Ekaterina
received its Empress again,
since Odessa removed the stalwart
bronze heroes of Potemkin.
She founded the southern city
by decree and others' acumen,
the plan of martial princes,
the labour of common men.
And why does she stand above us
even now as she was before?
Was she of such exalted stuff
that she should be honoured more
than the revolution's heroes
or the man who sweeps the floor?
She is only a fact of history,
which is perilous to ignore.
Author notes
Such symbols of Imperial Russia were removed by the Soviets; in the place of the Empress, they put a monument to the sailors of the "Battleship Potemkin" uprising of June 1905. The city of Odessa unveiled a replica of the original statue of Ekaterina II in October 2007. The sailors have a place of honour outside the gate of the Port of Odessa. Photo: by the author
In a list
A contest entry
- "The Old ..." by Lyndon.
850 points, ended December 8, 2007, 10 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Thanks for reading!
Comments
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Interesting (really)
Means more being first hand -- that you were there. -
It is nice to see her back, and your poem describes the "old" so well. Some things are nice to see back in their rightful place, and this was an interesting bit of history to learn!
-
My first impression? it asks--
How fortunate to be where such monuments bring history to the fore-- a 'passing' comparison of the city nearest us, where a WW2 aircraft that used to be beside the highway entrance (Judging by the stone "Gateway to the North," too narrow and low now for traffic) sits below an elevated four-lane access--which was bypassed by the Bypass, which used to carry through-traffic to Sudbury without hindrance of city traffic. The city swallowed that, and because of its congestion, I saw maps of the "Bypass-bypass" to be built considerably beyond the present route. Our monuments here are to the Almighty Automobile and its appetite for unspoiled beauty, for no doubt a Bypass-bypass-bypass will follow in due course just to maintain the speed of those who travel by road.
Other northern Ontario cities here have whimsical monuments--the immense "Big Nickel" at Sudbury, replica of a five-cent coin, also bypassed now, a monstrous goose elsewhere, various hugely oversized objects of local importance to announce the traveller has arrived without the need to read. In Québec by contrast, many monuments are honoured but the city around them, another proof that Québec is indeed a distinct society.
There is such a contrast in this poem, reaching past recent history as it does to an earlier history. The photo places this monument in mid-city, where there is no need ever to bypass it, giving it a permanence that only History can claim.
Technically I salute the quality of this poem, and particularly salute the second verse as an example of monumental acclaim!
Terry
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