Monument to Nicolas Copernicus, Warsaw

The great Polish astronomer who is said to have 'stopped the sun and moved the Earth', is honored in this statue on the Royal Way . The sculpture was designed by Bertel Thorvaldsen and unveiled in 1830. It depicts the scientist dressed in a toga, gazing up at the skies, which he researched. There is an inscription on the pedestal that reads 'To Nicolaus Copernicus from his compatriots'. During WWII the Polish inscription was covered by a German tablet which was in turn removed by the Polish resistance, right under the noses of the Germans as a sign of protest.