Famous sculptures and statues in Minsk
Francisk Skorina
The first Belarusian and eastern Slavonic book printer, a professor from the oldest Belarusian city - Polotsk, one of the greatest culture man of the 16th century Francisk Skorina (1490-1551), the graduator of the Krakow University, printed in Prague his «Ruska Bible» in 1517 - the first printed book of Russian (Belarus, Ukraine and Russia) world of that epoch. Francisk was a great man of his times - he served as a secretary for a bishop of Vilna (now Vilnius), met Martin Luther in Germany, and visited Moscow with a cultural mission. In 1506 he was awarded by the Paduan University with a medicine doctor degree.
The author of that sculpture is Ales' Dranits. Monument had been realized for 15 years since 1989. The right place for this monument has been a debatable question during all these years. Finally the first Belarusian book printer's sculpture appeared where it should be - at the National Library, a new symbol of Minsk that was opened a bit later in 2006. Francisk Skorina's Monument was opened on August 30, 2005. At the bottom of this unique building is a 6- meter bronze and granite monument of Francisk Skorina.
